


Lie To Me

by WindInYourSail



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV), Law & Order: SVU, Lie to Me (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-03
Updated: 2019-03-02
Packaged: 2019-10-03 18:58:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 42,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17289590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WindInYourSail/pseuds/WindInYourSail
Summary: I can’t think of a better title, but you can thank my recent decision to rewatch the show for this drabble... Other people write Spencer Reid much better than I do... or could hope to... my obsession is Rafael Barba. Still, this idea won’t leave my head so here it is.Just a note: I am posting two chapters at once.





	1. April 8th, 2009

April 8, 2009

Washington D.C.

 

“Seriously Cal?”

“That’s Dr. Lightman. I am your boss, remember...” He corrected.

“You can’t be serious about loaning me out.” Libby argued, ignoring his statement about his name.

“It’s the FBI, your old team in fact. It’ll be good for you.” Lightman stated, entering his office leaving Libby standing in the stark hallway staring at a closed door.

“What, did you sleep with the wrong person?” Eli Loker asked as he approached Lightman’s office, overhearing most of their conversation.

“Not even close.” Libby sighed as she started to leave.

“Where are you going?” Loker called after her.

“South Padre.” She huffed not bothering to look back.

 

 

Libby adjusted her dress, pulling her long dark auburn hair over one shoulder as she stared at the plane that used to be a regular mode of transportation for her... A lifetime ago it seemed.

“Are you getting on?” A voice came from behind her.

“Hey Rossi.” Libby sighed.

“Don’t sound so excited.” He teased.

“Is Reid working this one?”

“He is.”

“Ok...” Libby exhaled.

“What happened between you two?”

“Absolutely nothing.” Libby replied, taking a step toward the plane. She knew the qualifier told Rossi more than she intended, but honestly she no longer cared. If they profiled her, they profiled her. That wasn’t the reason she left anyway. If it had been, she would have never joined Cal Lightman at The Lightman Group. That man would read you, call you out on your shit, and never apologize for it. Hell, the whole group was worse about blatantly reading you than the BAU had ever been. There was an honesty about it that she actually kind of liked... most of the time. Reid wasn’t even the reason she left. If she wanted to keep how she felt from everyone she could... maybe not from Cal Lightman, but from pretty much everyone else. It was the whole being tortured and almost killed thing that made her rethink her career choice.

“Libby, hi.” JJ smiled.

“Glad you could join us. I know it was short notice.” Hotchner said, glancing up at her as he shifted through the file he was holding.

“Lightman really didn’t give me much choice.” Libby shrugged.

“It’s good to see you too.” Morgan said, sounding slightly hurt.

“It’s not you guys, just what this reminds me of. Last time I got on this plane I...” Libby inhaled deeply instead of finishing her statement. They all knew what happened anyway.

“We just need your eyes for the crowds and interviews. We have a tight timeline, spring break season ends this weekend and you see things we don’t. One of us will be with you at all times.” Prentiss assured her.

Libby took a seat on the far end of the plane from Reid, glancing at him before pulling a notepad out of her bag. She listened as the team discussed the case, taking a few notes so she’d know what to look for. The main reason Hotchner had asked for her was so she could read the crowd, her skills would be beneficial while searching for someone out of place in the sea of college students partying while on spring break.

 

When they landed Hotchner, Prentiss, and JJ went to the local precinct leaving Libby to ride with Morgan, Rossi, and Reid to the crime scene.

“Hi Libby.” Reid said softly when she climbed in the back of the SUV taking the seat next to him.

“Reid.” She nodded.

“You look nice.” He whispered, barely making eye contact.

“This isn’t exactly what I had planned to do today.” Libby replied flatly. She was still in the dark grey dress she had worn anticipating a day of screening potential presidential appointees, not traveling to South Padre.

Libby stared out the window as they drove, Morgan and Rossi in the front discussing a plan for when they arrived. She could feel his eyes on her but chose to ignore it. The last thing she wanted was to see how bad he felt.

 

Rossi introduced them to the hotel’s manager, introducing her out of habit as SSA Bradley... no one corrected him. She followed as the manager showed them to the room the latest victim had been killed in, old habits kicking in as she observed the room for clues, remaining quiet. She hadn’t noticed anything they hadn’t mentioned anyway.

The first person they interviewed was the guy who had cleaned the room and found the body. Libby scanned faces as they made their way to him but didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Half the people she saw looked hungover while the other half seemed to be of the philosophy that remaining drunk would ward off the hangover.

Adam Jackson was on the roof, the manager had said they could find him there. Libby stood where she could see his face as they questioned him about the room. Did anything seem out of place? Had he seen either victim before? How long he had worked at the hotel?... the typical questions.

“So...” Morgan questioned as they headed back to the stairs.

“He lied... when you asked about seeing them before. It could be nothing, just that he remembered seeing one of them in passing, or it could mean more.” Libby said, glancing back to Reid who was still talking to Adam.

“What’s going on with you two?” Morgan asked.

“Nothing.” She replied, dismissively, “Whatever Adam is asking Spence about, he’s genuinely distressed. It’s not shame, guilt, or disgust.”

Morgan gave her a curious look but didn’t say anything. “What did he ask you?” He asked Reid when he joined them.

“How long it takes for the images in your head to go away when you’ve seen something disturbing.” Reid replied, following them to interview more employees.

 

The day had been long. They had interviewed everyone on staff that day and met up with the others at the station to go over what they had found. It seemed they were looking for a male and female duo, the female luring the victim to the room and a male showing up later to rape and kill them.

Libby showered and changed into pajama pants and a t-shirt, turning the television on to distract her from the unsettled feeling sweeping over her. As much as she’d like to relax, she couldn’t. Not in an hotel room. Libby checked and rechecked the windows and door to ensure they were securely locked. Rationally, she knew this wasn’t the same. This unsub, or unsubs as it seemed, went after men and weren’t the type to draw attention to themselves by going after someone working the case. Before, she had fit his victimology and the profile indicated a strong hatred for authority. Still the fact that he had taken her from her hotel room while she slept had stuck with her.

She was pulling the covers back to crawl in bed when a knock at her door caused her whole body to tense as a shiver ran up her spine. Quietly, she made her way to look out the peephole, exhaling when she saw Reid on the other side of her door.

“What do you need, Reid?” Libby sighed as she opened the door.

“I know you don’t like sleeping in hotels alone.” Reid replied.

“I really don’t...”

“Do you have a double?” He asked, looking past her to see that she did.

“Why?” She questioned, furrowing her brow.

“I can sleep in the other bed, go back to my room in the morning.” Reid offered.

“I’m not sure...”

“I don’t have to, it was just a thought.” He shrugged, turning to leave.

Libby thought this was a terrible idea but she also knew she needed sleep, something she wouldn’t get much of alone.

“Spence... wait.” She sighed.

Reid approached her cautiously, entering the room only when she opened the door wider for him.

“I don’t want to talk.” Libby huffed, securing the door behind him and returning to her bed.

“Can I turn the bathroom light and television off?” He asked.

“Yes.” She replied while staring at the ceiling.

Reid quietly turned the bathroom light off, grabbing the remote before climbing in the other bed and flipping the television off as well.

“I really am sorry.” He said softly as they both laid in their respective beds in the dark.

“I know you are.” Libby sighed.

“Then why are still so upset with me?” Reid asked.

“Because you lied to me.” She said flatly, turning on her side facing away from him.

 

The next day Libby spent most of the morning at the hotel observing the guest and workers as she followed Reid, Morgan, and Rossi around. It was just her and Rossi when he got a call about an altercation between the first victim, Adam, and one the hotels female employees that Garcia had found on the hotel security cameras. They were back at the station with Adam in custody not long after the initial call.

Libby watched through the window as Reid interviewed Adam, but something was off. When he said he didn’t remember the altercation he seemed to be telling the truth which didn’t make since, it was clearly him on the video.

The rest of the team were discussing the hotel manager, Julie, and how she had been a motherly figure to Adam from a young age and was paying his bills while allowing him to live at the hotel.

When they brought her in Libby watched as they questioned each of them. She preferred to observe as it meant one less distractions while examining their facial expressions. Prentiss and Morgan questioned each suspect, a series of questions purposefully designed to distinguish a baseline for truth and help her distinguish a lie, not unlike a polygraph, along with questions about the crime itself.

“Well?” Hotchner asked asked when she exited the room.

“Julie’s telling the truth. Adam appears to be.” Libby said.

“What does that mean?” Rossi questioned.

“There’s something off about his answers. When the questions involve Julie, ‘Would you kill for Julie?’ It’s straight forward that he’s telling the truth but if the question is about the murders in general it’s harder to tell. The expression is mix, like part of him is lying and the other part is telling the truth. And then the control question with the geometric expression...” Libby furrowed her brow.

“What about it?” Reid asked.

“He lied.”

“It’s a control question to establish a baseline, he wasn’t supposed to know the answer.” Morgan interjected.

“Yes but he lied about not knowing the answer, like he knew he shouldn’t know it.” Libby replied.

“It doesn’t matter, we don’t have enough to hold them.” Hotchner stated.

 

Libby was sitting around the table as they brainstormed new possible leads.

“What do you keep watching?” She asked Reid as he looked curiously at the laptop screen in front of him.

“The footage from the pool when Adam had his altercation with the first victim,” Reid replied, turning the screen so she could see, “somethings not right about it.”

Libby watched as Adams was knocked down. “Did you see that?” She asked, pausing the video.

“See what?” Reid questioned.

“Look at his face and body language before he gets back up. It’s like a completely different person.” Libby said pressing play again.

“I thought I saw something like that when he left the station today. It was like a different person staring back at me.” Reid said.

“You’re thinking dissociative identity disorder?” Hotchner asked.

“He gets migraines, loses time, naps during the day because he’s always exhausted...” Reid stated.

“It fits,” Prentiss added, “reoccurring physical abuse, knowledge he shouldn’t have. We’ve seen this before.”

Libby watched as the rest of the team got ready to head out, her eyes lingering on Reid as he put on his vest rattling off more information on multiple personalities and their profile. She knew the vest were standard safety procedure but she doubted they would need them with this unsub. Still... she felt better that he had one on.

 

“We’re all here.” Morgan sighed as the door to the plane closed behind him.

“Uh, no we’re not. Where’s Spencer?” JJ asked.

“He’s staying behind to see if he can help Adam.” Morgan said.

“Why?” Prentiss questioned.

“Something he needs to deal with... has to do with Tobias Hankel.” Morgan shrugged.

“That guy who drugged and tortured him for two days?” Libby asked.

“He said Tobias tried to save him, it was the father persona that tortured him.” Morgan stated.

Libby wasn’t the only one who things had happened to. She knew that. That was also one of the reasons she left. The job itself put you at risk. She knew if she stayed that it was likely something would happen to her again or to someone she cared about, and she cared about everyone on that plane. She smiled as she watched them interact much more carefree than they had on the flight down.

“How’s The Lightman Group?” JJ asked, taking the seat next to her.

“Good. It’s usually quieter than the BAU but still challenging. I’m happy there.” Libby smiled.

“Safer than the BAU.” JJ smiled.

“I could be parachuting out of this plane and feel safer than I did at the BAU.” Libby chuckled.

“We have each other’s back.” JJ stated.

“I know, and I’m thankful everyday you found me in time, but...” Libby paused as the memory invaded her mind. The blinding lights and silhouetted figures... the muffled voices calling her name as she finally gave in to the exhaustion.

“It was close, I know.” JJ said, giving her a half smile.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Criminal Minds Episode Reference: Season 4 Episode 20  
> I won’t always use their cases but if I do I’ll try to remeber to reference it. Obviously I’ve reworked the episode to add her in.


	2. October 1st, 2013

October 1, 2013

New York City

 

“Rough day?” Libby smirked to the man sitting next to her at the bar. He had just taken a sip of his drink after slamming the file he was looking at closed for the third time since he had taken the seat next to her.

“That obvious?” He huffed, though the corners of his mouth twitched up slightly when he looked at her.

“You have slammed that closed three times now.” She chuckled, gesturing to his file with her eyes as she took a sip of her martini.

“My work can be frustrating.” He sighed, finishing the last of his drink and signaling for another.

“What do you do?” Libby asked.

“I’m a prosecutor.”

“A good one?”

“I am.” He smirked.

“You definitely believe that.” Libby chuckled, mostly at how assured he had been with his response.

“I’m Rafael.” He said, ignoring how humored she seemed to be with him... or maybe that was why he told her his name...

“Libby.” She smiled.

“Are you an Elizabeth?” He asked.

“No, a Lauren actually.” Libby replied.

“Libby isn’t typically short for Lauren.” He smirked.

“My full name is Lauren Blake Bradley. My mum started calling me Libby. She said it was a play on my initials. Truthfully, I think she always wanted to name me Libby but my dad argued against it, that Libby was a nickname, not a name.” She smiled.

“She seemed to have won in the end.”

“I’d say they compromised.” She said, smiling with her eyes as she sipped her martini.

“What do you do?” Rafael asked, putting the file in his briefcase so he could focus his attention on the woman sitting next to him.

“I’m a professor at Columbia University.” It was hopefully a final career change for her. She had been there for a year now and had fallen in love with teaching. It also gave her the opportunity to consult but didn’t obligate her to.

“What do you teach?” He asked.

“A course on profiling and one on criminal behavior.” She replied.

“So you’re Dr. Bradley.” He chuckled.

“No. I don’t have PhD, just extensive experience with what I teach.” Libby smiled.

“What experience landed you a professorship at Columbia without a doctorate?” Rafael asked lifting a brow.

“Five years with the FBI, three of them with their Behavioral Analysts Unit, then four years at The Lightman Group in D.C.” She shrugged.

“You were a profiler?” He questioned.

“I still consult occasionally.” She smiled, noticing his eyes dilate again.

“Are you any good?” Rafael smirked.

“When I teased you about having a rough day and you looked up at me, your eyes dilated, the corners of your mouth twitched up slightly, and you shifted in your chair turning your body towards me. This indicated that you were both pleased to be talking to me and you found me attractive.” Libby smiled.

“Attractive huh?” He said running his index finger along his bottom lip, his eyes crinkling slightly.

“Aroused is technically the term we’d use but I thought attractive would be less threatening. Don’t worry I’m sure I reacted the same way to you.” She stated, ordering another martini when the bartender brought his drink.

“Are you flirting with me?” Rafael teased.

“I am.” Libby smiled.

Rafael’s eyes crinkled into a smile as he took in the woman sitting next to him, consciously stopping himself from biting his lip when he realized he was doing it. The small chuckle she bit back not going unnoticed.

“What can you tell me about them?” He asked, pointing at a couple sitting across the bar from them.

“Well... he’s definitely getting laid tonight.” She said.

“Really?” Rafael asked.

“Yes. Look at her clothes, the hair... and then look at the angle of their bodies, how frequently they touch. Now notice her eyes, how they’re lacking emotion despite the smile on her face and his have a twinge of guilt behind them. He’s getting laid because he’s paying for it.” Libby chuckled.

“She’s an escort?”

“I’d say a pricey one.”

“Did you just make that up?” Rafael asked, not quite sure if he believed her.

“I didn’t. Pick someone else if you want.” She shrugged.

“Ok,” He smirked, noticing Liv, Nick, Rollins, and Fin sit down in a booth on the other side of the bar, “that group in the booth.”

Libby turned to get a better look, watching each person as they talked.

“The blond is annoyed they haven’t been served yet, she’s impatient, she’ll be at the bar shortly. The younger man has anger issues, the older one... I wouldn’t say he has anger issues like the other one but he’s annoyed about something... whatever it is, it’s personal to him. The brunette woman is struggling, there’s a sadness to her eyes, I’d say a fairly recent trauma. They work together, not a typical office job... it’s too late to be out with coworkers for that and they all seem to be discussing something, like they’re trying to solve a puzzle... I’d say they’re law enforcement, detectives maybe.” She said, turning back to look at him again.

“Ok, that’s scary.” Rafael said, both eyebrows lifted.

“You know them?”

“They’re SVU detectives.”

“The ones working whatever case you’ve slammed the file shut on multiple times tonight?” Libby smirked.

“They are.” He smiled, his eyes glancing at the television, “What can you tell me about her?”

Jolene Castille was on the news explaining how she had shot the rapist that had been pushing woman into their homes and raping them at gunpoint in their doorways. Of course Libby couldn’t hear the explanation since the volume was down, still she wasn’t unfamiliar with the story.

“I don’t know what she’s saying but whatever it is, she’s lying.” Libby stated.

“Are you sure?” Rafael asked.

“About something... I can’t tell you exactly what without the sound and even that wouldn’t make your case. You’d still have to find out why she’s lying and prove it.” Libby sighed.

“Why she’s lying?”

“The lie itself isn’t enough. She could be lying about what type of gun she used or where she had been earlier that evening. You have to determine why they lied to make it useful.” Libby explained.

“Can I get your number?”

“I take it you’re going back to work.” She smiled, handing him a card she dug out of her purse.

“Unfortunately.” He sighed, giving the card that had The Lightman Group written across the front of it a curious look.

“The cards old, the cell number’s current.” Libby said, getting the bartenders attention for her tab.

“I’ll call you when this case is over.” Rafael stated, sticking her card in his inside jacket pocket.

“You don’t have to wait for your case to be over to call. In my experience, there’s always another one. My schedule’s flexible and believe me, I understand a work life that interferes.” She stated as he reached for his briefcase.

“I’ll call then.”

“Good.” She smirked.

“I’m really glad I met you tonight.” He smiled, gently squeezing her hand that rested on the bar.

“Me too.” Libby replied, slightly disappointed when his hand left hers.

Rafael pushed his bottom lip up and sighed as he left, dragging a chair to the end of the booth as he joined the group she had spoken about moments earlier. Libby smiled at the bartender when he returned her card and signed the merchant’s copy. She took the last sip of her martini and made her way out of the bar, smiling at the man she had met, maybe half an hour ago, as she past him on the way out.

 


	3. April 17th, 2009

April 17, 2009 (plus and minus a few days...)

Washington D.C.

 

“How was the BAU?” Lightman questioned as they walked into the building together that Monday morning.

“Fine.” Libby stated, still annoyed with him for not sending Loker or Torres.

“You’re mad at me.” He accused, seeming slightly amused.

“I have work to do. I assume you rescheduled the screenings for this week.” She exhaled, pausing to look at him.

“At ten.”

“I should prep then.” Libby said, turning for her office.

“I still think it was good for you.” He called after her.

 

“Libby, you ready?” Loker asked, poking his head in her office.

“Yes.” She replied, following him to the room they had set up for the interviews.

This wasn’t a job interview, the president could appoint who he wanted. This was preliminary screenings of possible candidates, the sole purpose being to ensure they weren’t hiding something that could be an embarrassment to the administration.

“How was working with your old team?” Loker asked as they walked.

“Fine.”

“That’s not defensive.” He said sarcastically.

Libby ignored his comment, joining Gillian Foster in the room that seemed to be nothing more than an office. Loker continued on to the analysis room to monitor the cameras with Ria Torres.

They spent the better part of the day questioning the four potential presidential appointees. Two of which appeared to be hiding something shameful while the other two showed no signs of deception.

“I’ll take our findings to the White House. Cal would like to see you.” Gillian said, gathering her notes.

Libby sighed, not bothering to hide the annoyed expression on her face.

“He really does mean well.” Gillian said, the slightest hint of a smile on her lips.

“Are you sure about that.” Libby smirked.

“Almost positive.”

 

“Why do you think I hired you?” Lightman asked when she entered his office.

“Truthfully?”

“I’ll know if not.”

“I’m good.” Libby shrugged.

“Arrogance.” Lightman said excitedly, pointing at her.

“So...”

“You know you’re good, so why did you leave the FBI?” He asked, looking at her curiously.

“You know why.”

“That’s an evasion. There’s more to this than just your abduction.” He accused.

“No, there’s not.” She shrugged again.

“That’s a lie.”

“Will you stop reading me?” Libby grumbled.

“No. You read people almost as well as I do. The only reason he got to you was because you were asleep...”

“Yeah, well... I have to be able to sleep.” She interrupted.

“Is that it, you feel vulnerable when you sleep?”

“Why do you care if I work for the FBI or not?” Libby asked, knowing he knew she purposely didn’t answer his question.

“I don’t, this has to do with you moving past this fear you have so you can do the job effectively.” Lightman stated.

“You just said I read people almost as well as you.”

“You do, I’ve been training you since you were seven, but you have to be able to work with a variety of agencies, including the FBI.”

“I get that, but you could have sent Loker or Torres to work with my old team. It’s only been six months.” She replied.

“Hotchner asked for you.” Lightman stated.

“Oh...” Libby sighed.

“How’s your mum?”

“She’s good. She’d love to hear from you.” She smiled.

“Yeah... ok, back to work with you.” He said, shooing her out of his office.

 

Libby had found a condo well within her budget not far from the Potomac when she had first graduated from the academy. There wasn’t a view of the river but the complex had done a nice job landscaping, blocking the view of the businesses from the balcony with greenery. If she wanted to people watch, she only had to look out her living room window. There was a coffee shop, shopping, and few restaurants within walking distance and she enjoyed watching the people below mill about almost as often as she turned the television on.

By the time she got home on Friday all she wanted to do was unwind with a glass of wine and a book. She had just curled up under a blanket on her couch when there was a knocked at her door.

“Cal, I swear, if you’re here to discuss my issues with the BAU...” She grumbled, stopping mid sentence when she opened the door to find Reid standing there.

“Spencer...”

“Can I come in?” He asked.

Libby opened the door wide enough for him to enter, wishing she was wearing more than the shorts and t-shirt she had changed into not intending to do more than read before bed.

“I’ve been obsessing over what you said in the hotel room, trying to figure out when I lied to you.” He stated, sounding a bit exasperated.

“Spence...”

“Then I figured it out,” Reid said looking at her, his eyes softer, “I lied when I said I didn’tfeel the same way you did... you knew... I’m not sure I knew until...” he trailed off thinking about the anguish he had felt when she had been taken, “it’s not a feeling I process often.”

“Why are you here?” Libby whispered.

Reid didn’t say anything as he moved closer, looking down at her when there were mere inches between them. Libby looked up, her eyes meeting his as he leaned down to kiss her.

“Spencer...”

She pulled back to look at him.

“It’s what you wanted, right?” He breathed, not letting her go.

“Only if you want it too.”

“I do.” Reid nodded, pulling her back to him, his lips softly making contact with hers.

The gentle kiss quickly manifested into more, both having spent an ample amount of time dismissing their feelings toward the other. Libby softly moaned against his lips when his hand grazed her breast on it path to the small of her back. It had been unexpected for both of them but not in anyway unpleasant.

“Why are you still wearing your vest and tie?” Libby breathed, her fingers working the buttons on the vest as Reid reached to remove the tie.

“It’s what I wore to work today.” He stated as though that was the most logical thing one could say.

Libby smiled and pulled him back to her lips, her hands moving into his hair as he walked her towards her room. Nothing about what was happening between them had been premeditated and neither of them seemed to be concerned with actually thinking, a novelty for both of them, but perhaps more so for Reid.

Clothes littered the path they had taken from the living room to her bed. His skin felt warm pressed against hers, both of them absorbed with the other. Reid fingers gripped her hair as her legs spread beneath him allowing him access to her. Libby moaned into his mouth when he pushed into her, her back arching, pushing her chest against his, her hands entangling themselves in his hair. Reid thrust into her as they both lost themselves in the embrace of the other.

“Jesus Spence...” Libby panted, the sensation building within her.

He had been in no rush, steadily taking his time, enjoying the simplicity of just being with her. The breathy words provoked a change as he quickened his pace, both of them moaning as her neck arched back, his mouth softly caressing it as he waited for her.

“Fuck...” She groaned, her body buckling beneath him.

Their lips met again as he grunted his release, collapsing against her, her fingers running through his hair while their breathing leveled out.

 

“I had really only planned to kiss you.” Reid breathed when she glanced up at him, his hand reaching to push her hair out off her face as they laid wrapped in each other’s arms.

“Maybe you should have kissed me before I spent years pining for you then.” Libby smiled.

“Years... why didn’t you say anything sooner?”

“Because you took it so well when I did finally tell you...” She grumbled.

“You were so broken after Edward Turner... I didn’t think you really meant it. People tend to cling to those closest to them when they’re distressed. I assumed you were projecting those feelings onto me out of fear.” Reid stated.

“That’s why you lied?” She questioned, her eyes never leaving his.

“I was afraid that when you worked through what Turner did to you that I’d end up getting hurt.”

“Do you still think that?”

“I wouldn’t be here if I did.”

Libby rested her head against his chest satisfied that he was telling her the truth.

“Spencer...”

“Yeah?”

“I was too scared to tell you before, and when Turner took me... I was afraid I might never get the chance...” Libby whispered, her voice cracking slightly, “I had to tell you how I felt, even if you rejected me.”

“I’m sorry I put you through that.”

“It doesn’t matter now.” She exhaled, starting to climb out of bed.

“Where are you going?” Reid asked.

“Are you sleeping here?” Libby asked, slipping on the robe hanging on the back of her closet door.

“I’d like to.”

“I’ll be right back then.”

“Wait, what are you doing?” He asked finding his underwear and following her.

Libby didn’t answer as she double checked that every window was secure and the front and balcony doors were locked.

“Didn’t you do that before I got here.” He chuckled as he watched.

“I always double check before I go to sleep.”

“Do you still have nightmares?”

Libby nodded.

“You didn’t that night in South Padre.” Reid noted.

“You were there.” She shrugged.

“Libby?”

“Yes.”

“Do you still keep extra toothbrushes?” He smiled.

“For my go bag?” She chuckled, “yes.”

He followed her to the bathroom where she pulled an unopened one from a drawer and handed it to him. She grabbed her own from the holder and pulled out the toothpaste.

“Do you still pack one?”

“A go bag?” She questioned, sticking the toothbrush in her mouth and handing him the toothpaste.

“Yes.”

“How do you think I had clothes when we were in South Padre?” Libby smirked.


	4. October 2nd, 2013

October 2, 2013

New York City

 

“Hello?” Libby said when she answered the phone, not recognizing the number that came up.

“Libby?” A familiar voice questioned from the other end.

“Rafael, hi?” She smiled.

“Did you put me on speaker?” He asked, noticing more ambient noise than before.

“While I save your number. My class just ended but I have a few stragglers chatting not far from me.”

“Oh....” He paused not really wanting to talk with her students able to hear, not that they knew who he was.

“Ok, you’re off speaker.” Libby stated, pulling the phone back to her ear.

“You don’t want my last name for your contact?” He chuckled.

“Rafael works for now, I can always edit the contact.”

“You’re trusting.”

Even though she couldn’t see his face she could tell he had smirked from the changes in the inflection of his voice.

“You underestimate my ability to read people.” She replied.

“Are you free for dinner tonight?”

“I thought you were busy? Jolene Castille’s trial is still all over the news.” She said, taking the stack of test her TA had handed her.

“I am but we both have to eat and you’re right, there will always be a case... trial... some excuse.”

“Give me a location and time and I’ll meet you.” Libby smiled, sliding the stack of test into her bag.

 

Libby stopped by her office to drop off her lecture notes from today and grab the set for tomorrow, slipping them in the bag with the test. She liked to be prepared and give them a once over the night before class. Then decided to head home. Rafael had wanted to meet at six thirty and she felt she could get more grading done at home than with the constant interruptions that happened while she was in her office. That and she wanted to change.

Her apartment wasn’t far from campus and allowed her to walk to and from work, the route through Morningside Park being the fastest, but only one she’d take if it was still light out. Another quirk left over from the BAU, they all had their list of things they’d never do again. One selling point of the apartment had been that it was on the corner of the park, meaning she didn’t have to walk completely around it to get home at night, just to one end. She had a nice view of St. John’s Cathedral just over the trees and easy access to Central Park for her morning run.

When she got home she put her bag by her desk in the odd little room she used both as a home office and dining area, and started rummaging through her closet until she settled on a dark blue fitted dress that hit just passed the knees, and had three quarter sleeves with a square neck. She hung it on the back of her closet door before sitting down to grade. At four thirty she took a shower, styled her long dark auburn hair into soft curls, reapplied her make up and slipped into the dress.

 

“You look...” Rafael inhaled as he searched for the word he wanted.

“Thank you.” Libby smiled.

“I might not have been about to compliment you.” He smirked.

“You were planning to insult your date before you even got to the table?” She chuckled.

“I suppose not.”

Rafael pulled her chair out for her before taking his own seat.

“How’s you’re trial going?” Libby asked, mainly to get the conversation going.

“It’s going...”

“You don’t think you’re going to win.” She stated.

“Do you always do that?” Rafael asked.

“I do, but I can refrain from saying everything I see if that makes you more comfortable.” Libby shrugged.

Rafael thought for a moment before speaking. “If you’re going to know more about me than I actually tell you, I think I’d like to know.”

“Then I’ll be honest with you. I prefer it that way anyway... feels less like I’m hiding something.”

“Ok...” He exhaled.

“Oh, that makes you anxious.” She giggled.

“Maybe don’t state the obvious.” He smirked.

“What do you want to know about me?” Libby asked.

“Why’d you leave the FBI?”

“Lets start with an easier question. I’ll tell you, just maybe save it for the second date.” She smiled

“Fair enough. Where are you from?” He asked. He had noticed her use of the word mum but she didn’t seem to have an accent.

“I was born in Oxford, but my dad moved us to Boston when I was four. I did go back to England for university.” Libby replied.

“Is that why you don’t have much of an accent?”

“Most of my language development was done in the states. It’ll make an appearance depending on who I’m speaking with.” Mostly when she argued with her mother or Cal Lightman.

“What university?”

“Oxford. I just had to go where dad and Uncle Cal had gone.” She smiled.

“Cal Lightman’s your uncle?” Rafael asked.

“Not blood. He and my dad where good friends when they were in college. My dad was a grad student, a few years older than Cal and my mum had already graduated and was working as a teacher. I think Cal had barely started undergrad when I was born because I remember him coming by the house and going to his graduation... I had to be old enough for the memory to stick. Cal visited a lot, especially after my dad passed, checking in on mum. It didn’t matter that we had moved to the states, I still saw him fairly regularly.” Libby said.

“Hence Uncle Cal,” Rafael smiled, “did he teach you to read people?”

“He claims I’m a natural, that I was reading faces before I could talk, but I don’t believe him.”

“Why?”

“He’s been training me my whole life it seems. It’s hard to believe it’s natural when all I have are memories of Cal badgering me to tell me what expression I saw on the local librarian or grocery clerk.” She chuckled.

“Why’d you leave The Lightman Group?” Rafael asked.

“I wanted to leave D.C., I still consult occasionally especially if the case brings them here.”

“Why did you want to leave D.C.?”

“I just needed a change.” Libby shrugged.

Their conversation was interrupted when the waiter took their order, apologizing for the delay, though neither of them had noticed it.

“What about you?” She asked.

“You don’t already know?” He smirked.

“I can see emotions in the moment and am quite skilled at deductive reasoning... I’m not psychic.” Libby chuckled.

“I grew up in the Bronx and have lived in New York my whole life with the exception of undergrad and law school at Harvard.”

“Always a prosecutor in Manhattan?”

“Actually up until last year I was in Brooklyn.” He smiled.

“You’re happy about the change.”

“I am.”

“Do you get a variety of cases, or do you mostly work with the detectives from the other night?” Libby asked, having noticed a familiarity between them.

“SVU takes up a lot of my time.” He chuckled.

“You like prosecuting sex crimes?”

“I like putting bad people in jail.”

“I always liked that part myself.” She sighed.

“You really won’t tell me why you left the FBI?”

“I let fear win.” Libby shrugged.

“Something happened?”

“I knew the risk... I just never got over it. I’m good at profiling and detecting deception,I can usually compartmentalize pretty well too. I was fine until the unsub we were looking for came after me. After that I constantly worried... about me, the others on my team... I still worry about them. I just couldn’t shake the fear.” Libby said.

“How often does something happen to FBI agents themselves?” Rafael asked.

“More than you’d think.” She didn’t want to get into the things that still kept her up at night.

“You said you still consult occasionally?”

“I do, I even still have my security clearance.” Libby shrugged.

“You still have your clearance?”

“I can pass a psych eval, I wasn’t asked to leave, I chose to.”

“Did you ever date any of them?” Rafael smirked.

“Yes.”

“While you worked together?”

“After.” She replied.

“Not something you want to talk about?”

“It doesn’t bother me to talk about Spencer. I just didn’t think he’d come up on a first date.” Libby smirked.

“Do you still see him?” Rafael asked as the waiter sat their food down.

“I’m occasionally asked to work with the BAU. He’s still with them.”

“Does your mom still live in Boston?” He asked, changing the subject.

“She moved back to England after I graduated high school to be closer Gran. My dad’s job is what brought us to the states. She only stayed after he died so that I wouldn’t have to changes schools.”

“Seems like she might have needed family around.”

“I think that’s why Cal visited so often. I was at one of the top private schools in the area, education was more important to her than a support system, that and she knew my education was important to my father.” Libby stated taking a bite of her food.

“How did your dad die?” He asked.

“He was killed during a robbery at a gas station. In the wrong place at the wrong time. I was eleven.” She replied while gently biting her lip, tonging a cut she hadn’t noticed before.

“It stuck with you.” Rafael noted.

“For a long time the risk involved with working for the FBI didn’t bother me. I mean you could die picking up a bag of chips on your way home from work. I’ve been shot, stabbed, survived physical altercations... fear of death isn’t why I left.” Libby said, setting her fork down. The appetite she once had completely gone now as the memory of what happened to her flooded her mind.

“Then what was it?”

“There are things worse than death.” She stated, taking a sip of her drink.

Rafael was quiet for a moment as he watched her. He wasn’t a profiler, but he had learned over the years when someone wanted him to stop asking questions, usually that’s when he pushed for more information. This wasn’t work though, so he remained quiet.

“What about your parents?” Libby questioned, noticing he had stopped talking.

“My mom runs a charter school and my dad died thirteen years ago.”

“You don’t care much for your dad?”

“Why would you say that?” He asked curiously.

“The statement about your mum was positive, you’re proud of her. The part about your dad is dismissive, like the only nice thing you could think of to say was that he had died.”

Rafael almost seemed to smirk as he chewed on his lip. “Are you done?”

“With my food?”

“Yes.” He said, signaling for the waiter when she nodded.

 

“Where do you live?” He asked as they exited the restaurant.

“Not near here.” Libby chuckled.

“I’ll give you a ride then.”

Libby followed him to the car waiting not too far from the restaurant.

“I was wondering what you were doing on your phone earlier.” She smiled once they were settled in the backseat.

“What’s your address?”

“220 Manhattan Ave.”

Rafael slid her hand in his as they quietly rode to her apartment.

“I didn’t offend you with the comment about your father did I?” She asked after neither of them had spoken for over half the ride.

“I wouldn’t be holding your hand if you had.” He smirked, mostly at the fact that she’d had to ask.

 

“Do you want me to walk you up?” Rafael asked when they reached her building.

“Sure.” She nodded.

They both slid out of the car, Rafael taking her hand again as they entered her building.

“What floor?” He asked as the elevator doors closed.

“Six.”

“You’re very monosyllabic suddenly.” He chuckled.

“Yeah, well...” Libby smirked, not giving him the satisfaction of confirming her nerves to him.

“I’m just making sure you make it safely inside.” He smiled, allowing her to lead once the elevator doors opened.

“Sure you are.” She teased, stopping outside her door.

“This is you?” Rafael asked, her hand still in his as he turned her to face him.

“It is.”

“Are you free for dinner Friday?” He questioned, pushing her hair behind her ear.

“I am.” Libby smiled as he leaned down to kiss her.

He pulled her closer when her arms wrapped around his neck, slowly moving them so her back pressed against her door. A small moan escaped her when his body pressed against hers.

“Rafael...” She panted, pulling her lips from his but not her arms from around his neck.

“I still have work to finish.” He breathed, pressing his forehead to hers.

“Ok.” She exhaled, slightly relieved that she didn’t have to decide whether to invite him in or not.

“I’ll text you a time once I know how late I’ll be in court Friday.” Rafael said, looking at her as he stepped back slightly, his hand running through her hair again.

“We can eat here.”

“Are you offering to cook for me?” He smirked.

“Unless you’d prefer to go out.”

“No, your place will work.”

“Friday then.” Libby smiled.

“Friday.” He repeated, kissing her again before heading towards the elevator.

 


	5. May 13th, 2009

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Episode Reference  
> Lie To Me: Season 1 Episode 13  
> Criminal Minds: Season 4 Episode 24
> 
> I found it slightly humorous that these two episodes aired the same day and decided to have them overlap. I touched a lot on the Lie To Me episode because I really don’t how many people watched that show (even though it’s still one of my favorites). I use some of the actual lines from the episode because googling the subject didn’t seem like the wisest idea.

May 13, 2009

Washington D.C.

 

“What’s going on?” Libby asked as she entered work to find everyone crowded around the television screen.

“Terrorist attack.” Loker stated, not taking his eyes off the screen.

Libby notice Cal and Foster as they headed toward the door.

“Can I come with you?” She blurted, stopping them from making their exit.

“I’d rather you stay here, love.” Cal said, starting to push past her.

“You do realize I’m trained for these situations.” Libby argued.

“I’d still rather you stay here.” Cal stated placing his hand on her shoulder.

Libby rolled her eyes, but returned to join the others watching the news report.

 

When he returned, Cal sent Torres with Foster to interview the other members of the suicide bomber’s mosque. Another argument she had lost, leaving her behind to work with Loker.

“You seem less irritable lately.” Loker noted as they sifted through the little information they had.

“That’s nice... I think.” Libby stated, scanning the faces in the crowd from the news footage.

“Are you getting laid?”

“Why is everything about sex with you?”

“It’s not, it’s just usually a shift in demeanor like yours indicates a change in relationship status.” Loker replied, glancing at her as she processed his comment.

“I’m seeing someone.” She said, trying to focus her attention on the crowd in the news footage so her face wouldn’t give away the smile she was fighting off.

“So you are getting laid,” Loker chuckled, “does Cal know?”

“Why would Cal need to know?”

“Cause he treats you like a daughter. It’s the main reason I’ve never hit on you.” Loker stated almost dismissively as he focused on his work.

“Spencer’s met him, just not since we started dating.” Libby smirked, muttering the last bit under her breath.

“Purposely?”

“Cal can be a bit much.” She chuckled.

“Have you warned him to stay out of public places?” Loker asked.

“He’s FBI, with the BAU, they’re working a case in Annapolis. I’m sure they already know about this though.”

“So you did sleep with someone?” Loker smiled, referencing his comment from before she left for South Padre.

“Not at the time you initially asked.” She smirked.

“We have video from the mosque.” Foster stated as she and Torres entered the analysis room interrupting their conversation.

“I’ll pull it up.” Loker replied, plugging various cords into the control panel.

 

“Zoom in on their faces when Torres removed her head scarf.” Foster suggested.

“Did you do that to gauge their reaction?” The FBI agent from the counterterrorist task force they were working with asked.

“Terrorist tend to see the world in black and white.” Foster stated.

“When I removed my headscarf there were a lot of reactions... shock, interest, but only one displayed this...” Torres said, queuing up the video to the section she wanted.

“That is some intense anger.” Loker interjected.

They had spoken with eleven groups of about twelve men each and only three had shown extreme anger.

“Well, any fundamentalist would show that. It doesn’t mean they’re terrorist.” Loker stated.

“No it doesn’t, but it’s a place to start.” Foster replied.

 

“How are you doing?” Libby asked Emily, Lightman’s daughter, as she watched the news cover the second bombing of the day. Cal’s ex wife had brought her by the office so she’d know she’d be safe before returning to the Department of Justice. She would have taken her there, but Lightman wasn’t a possible target, the DOJ was.

“I have friends that go to that mall. How many more are there going to be?” Emily asked, clearly shaken by the events taking place.

“Why don’t you hang out in your dad’s office, stop watching the news for a while.” Libby suggested, guiding Emily away from the television when she nodded.

 

“What’s up with Torres?” Gillian Foster was standing at the end of the hall watching Cal talk to her when Libby passed her.

“She’s blaming herself for missing the second bomber.” Foster replied.

“They’re both from the same mosque?”

“They are. She talked to the second bomber three hours before the attack.”

“Thirteen people... that’s a heavy load to place on yourself.” Libby sighed.

“Cal sent Loker with Reynolds to the mall.” Foster informed her.

“Does everyone get to leave today except me?” Libby grumbled.

“Libby...”

“What is that look for?”

“I’m surprised you want to.” Foster frowned.

“This isn’t the same. Besides it isn’t likely they’d bomb the same place twice.” Libby stated.

“Still, having to make that call to your mom isn’t something he ever wants to do.” Foster said, joining Lightman as he approached.

“I’ll work on a profile based off what we know of the two bombers, see if it will help narrow down a list of potentials.” Libby offered.

“See, now that’s useful.” Lightman deadpanned.

 

“How’s your case going?” Libby texted Reid. She knew it may be a while before he could respond depending on what was happening, but she like checking in to ensure he was safe. The worrying wasn’t something she could control anymore. The two days he had been held by Tobias Hankel had been two of the longest of her life, aside from the two weeks Turner kept her... Spencer knew this and would respond as soon as he could, even if it was just something generic to let her know he was ok.

“It’s going. How’s yours?” He sent back assuming Lightman had picked up the attacks on DC.

“About the same. Keep an eye out, Annapolis isn’t that far, and let me know when you head back.”

“I will.” It was a short conversation but truthfully they were both busy.

Libby settled in at her desk as she worked through the information on both bombers. The more she looked into them, the less sense everything seemed to make. Suicide bombers were usually loaners, isolated from others. Both of these men were actively involved in the community... editor on the school newspaper, band practice, volunteered at the mosque... good students. They didn’t fit the profile...

 

“You look perplexed.” Loker noted when she joined him in the analysis room.

“These guys don’t fit the profile of suicide bombers...” she muttered, “what’s all this?”

“Illegally obtained surveillance.” Lightman stated.

“Oh...” Libby frowned. Lightman ignored the look, gesturing for Loker to continue with playback on the latest selection the computer had flagged for vocal pitch high enough to indicate distress.

“Looks like we have a winner.” Foster stated as she listened to a voice she recognized from their interviews.

“How are we suppose to match a voice with a name?” Reynolds questioned.

“Foster never forgets a voice.” Lightman replied.

“Some of us are better listeners than others.” Foster quipped.

The voice matched the father of the second bomber and soon Libby was left at the office with Loker again as they went to bring him in.

“Where’s Torres?”

“You didn’t hear? Dupree was in the elevator at the mall when the bomb went off. She’s at the hospital” Loker replied.

“What was secret service doing there?”

“They heard chatter that malls could be targeted and went to help coordinate security.”

 

The father confirmed it was him on the tape but that he was scolding his nephew for what he though was stealing money from the collection tins. Reynolds was the one who put it together that the tins were being used to transport the bombs and that the assumed bombers were actually innocent victims used to carry out the attacks.

“Go home.” Lightman said once Reynolds confirmed the threat was over.

“Ok.” Both Libby and Loker replied at the same time.

Lightman continued on to his office leaving just the two of them.

“Are you going to hang out with your boyfriend?” Loker asked.

“I don’t know how late he’ll be in Annapolis. Their cases aren’t typically resolved in one day.” Libby sighed.

“What’s their case about?”

Libby furrowed her brow. “I don’t know. Spence didn’t say.”

“Is that unusual?” Loker asked.

“They’re probably just busy.” Libby replied dismissively.

“Still, your worried.”

“I’m always worried.” Libby chuckled to cover the concern she really felt. The concern that was only amplified when her phone rang with Derek Morgan’s name flashing across her screen.

“Morgan?” She answered, waving the look Loker gave her off.

“Hey, Reid wanted me to call you...”

“Where?” She interrupted. The tone his voice was all she needed to know something had happened.

“Walter Reed Hospital.” Morgan replied.

“In Bethesda? I thought you were in Annapolis... Never mind, I’ll be there in forty minutes.”

Libby hung up the phone, ignoring the curious look from Loker, instead rushing to her office to grab her things.

 

“What happened?” Libby asked as she walked in the hospital room to find Morgan sitting in a chair and Spencer asleep in the bed.

“He’s going to be ok.” Morgan assured her.

“That’s not what I asked.” Libby huffed.

Morgan was about to speak when the doctor came in.

“Who is this?” She asked before discussing Reid’s condition.

“His girlfriend.” Libby stated, smiling at the look on Morgan’s face.

The doctor gave her the same dumbed down explanation she had given the family members of the other victims, but assured her he would be ok.

“Ok, what really happened?” She asked, turning to Morgan after the doctor left.

“He’s going to be fine, lets address this girlfriend thing first.” Morgan grinned.

“What, are you twelve?” Libby chuckled.

“Sometimes.” He smiled, picking up a container of jell-o he had sweet talk a nurse into getting him.

“Are you eating jell-o?” Reid asked, as he tried to sit up.

“Nuh uh, you get to answer my questions first.” Morgan chuckled.

“Libby...” Reid breathed.

“When did you two start dating?” Morgan questioned.

“About a month ago.” Libby answered, quickly turning her attention back to Reid, “What happened?”

“I started to feel sick, turned out to be worse than I thought.” Spencer said his voice raspy and dry.

“You’re a terrible liar.” Libby huffed.

“Just tell her, she still has her clearance.” Morgan chuckled, knowing Libby wouldn’t stop until she got the truth anyway.

“Some lunatic decided to weaponize Anthrax.” Reid sighed.

“And you were exposed?”

“He also found the cure, saving at least four other people.” Morgan interjected.

“What was his end game?” She asked.

“The Frederick station to Fort Detrick,” Morgan answered, “We got him.”

“Two attacks on the DC area in one day...” Libby sighed, sitting down.

“Makes you not want to know what we don’t know, huh?” Morgan muttered.

Libby only nodded.

“I heard you got your guy too.” Morgan added.

“They did.” Libby replied.

“They?” Reid questioned.

“Cal kept me at arms length, wouldn’t let me leave the office.” She grumbled.

“I thought that’s what you wanted?” Morgan questioned.

“This was different. I don’t mind the risk, depending on the risk... it’s hard to explain...”

“No one was holding women hostage and torturing them until they begged for death.” Reid stated.

“Ok... maybe not that hard to explain.” Libby sighed.


	6. October 4th, 2013

October 4, 2013

New York City

 

“Jesus, he’s early.” Libby muttered to herself, making her way to the door to let what she assumed was Rafael in. They had planned on him arriving at seven for dinner and seeing as it was only five thirty, she had just started getting things together to cook.

“Cal?!” She blurted, shocked to see him standing on the other side of her opened door.

“You don’t look pleased to see me?” He stated, entering her apartment despite the fact that she hadn’t exactly invited him in.

“Just surprised, you usually call first.”

“I was in the city giving a guest lecture and thought I’d come by.”

“Can we grab lunch tomorrow? I kind of have a date tonight.” Libby suggested, hoping to get him to leave before Rafael showed up.

“You kind of have a date... that you’re cooking for?” Lightman questioned, tilting his head as he peeked into the kitchen.

“Fine, I have a date and yes, I’m cooking for him.”

“And you’d like for me to be gone before he gets here?”

“Preferably.” Libby smirked.

“You must really like him.” Lightman smiled.

“Why do you say that?”

“Because when you’re only semi interested in someone you find my interrogation amusing.”

“It can be entertaining to watch them squirm, but I do like this one so you need to go.” Libby smiled.

“I’ll just stay while you cook, leave when he get’s here. You have to at least let me meet him now that I know you’re seeing someone.” Lightman argued.

“Fine, but if you start treating him like one of the poor saps that try to date your daughter I will kick you out.” Libby chuckled.

 

“Can I take some of that to go?” Lightman asked as Libby went to answer the door.

“Yes. There’s disposable tupperware in the cabinet above the stove.” She called over her shoulder.

Libby quickly opened the door and stepped into the hall, pulling the door closed behind her. “I need to warn you.” She said when Rafael gave her a curious look.

“Ok...”

“Cal Lightman is here. He’s not staying but wants to meet you.”

“You seem nervous.” Rafael chuckled.

“You don’t know Cal like I do. Even though he promised he wouldn’t, he will find a way to make you uncomfortable.” Libby grumbled.

“I think I can handle myself.”

“I just wanted to give you a heads up.” She smiled, opening the door to let him into her apartment.

“Rafael this is Cal Lightman.” Libby said introducing them.

“Do you not know his last name?” Cal smirked, shaking Rafael’s hand.

“It’s Barba.” Rafael stated.

“Doesn’t change the fact that she didn’t know it.” Cal said, having noticed her the slight panic cross her face.

“It’s only the second date.” Libby muttered.

“I did try to give it to you.” Rafael smirked.

“He finds your annoyance with me amusing.” Cal noted.

“Ok, you’ve met.” Libby huffed, starting to push Lightman towards the door.

“Barely,” Lightman said pulling away from her and back toward Rafael, “What is it that you do?”

“He’s a prosecutor. I told you that.” Libby said.

“Did you grow up in New York?” Lightman questioned.

“In the Bronx.” Libby again answered for him.

“You do realize I can read him whether he speaks or not.” Lightman stated, turning his attention to Libby.

Libby muttered something indiscernible under her breath, but held her hands up in defeat.

“Where’d you go to law school?” Lightman asked.

“Harvard.” Rafael replied.

“And now he has a baseline...” Libby grumbled.

“A what?” Rafael questioned.

“Nothing.” She sighed, pulling plates down from the cabinet.

“Are you a honorable person?” Lightman asked, tilting his head slightly.

“I think so.” Rafael replied.

“Are you hoping for sex tonight?” Lightman questioned, knowing Libby would stop him before he got anywhere useful the slow way.

“Cal!” Libby yelled, turning her attention to Rafael, “don’t answer that.”

“I wasn’t planning on it.” Rafael chuckled.

“He’d like to, but seems not to have any expectations.” Lightman stated.

“And you’re leaving now.” Libby huffed, grabbing the container of food Lightman had dished himself and shooed him toward the door.

“You really are uptight.” Lightman smiled.

“And you have no concept of boundaries.” Libby grumbled, pushing him out the door.

“Are we still doing lunch tomorrow?” Lightman asked.

“Yes.” Libby replied, shutting the door in his face.

 

“I’m sorry about him, he thinks he needs to treat me like his daughter.” Libby muttered when she reentered the kitchen.

“Maybe he thinks of you as one.” Rafael suggested.

“Doesn’t give him an excuse to behave that way. I’m thirty two, I am fully capable of deciding who to date and who to sleep with.” She grumbled.

“Are those mutually exclusive?” He smirked.

“You know what I mean.”

She was standing close, not that the kitchen allowed for much distance between them and Rafael couldn’t help but smile at her.

“I’m glad you find this amusing.” The smirked she made quickly turned into a smile when he pulled her into his arms, leaning down to kiss her.

“Do you have any food allergies?” Libby asked when their lips parted.

“What?”

“I made Shrimp Pad Thai which has both peanuts and shellfish. I didn’t think to ask if you had food allergies.” She clarified.

“I’m not allergic to nuts or shellfish.” He smirked.

“Good.”

Libby handed him a plate and then dragged him by the hand to the room she both used as an office and dining area.

“Your apartment has an interesting layout.” Rafael noted, discarding his suit jacket on the back of a chair, the tie he had been wearing, left at the office.

The room they were in had French doors opening to the living room and a doorframe but no door leading to the kitchen and short hallway back to where he assumed her bedroom and bathroom were.

“Don’t most New York apartments?” Libby smiled.

“This is true.”

“How’s your trial going?”

“It’s over.” He stated.

“Oh...”

“What? I said two words.”

“Yeah, but the expression behind those two words told me you lost.” Libby replied.

“That just means I have a bit more free time.” Rafael smiled.

“Doesn’t change the fact that it bothers you that you lost.” Libby chuckled.

“I like to win.” He smirked.

 

“I can help clean dishes.” Rafael offered as he followed her back to the kitchen with his plate.

“You can rinse and I’ll load the dishwasher.” Libby smiled, handing him her plate.

Libby put the remainder of the Pad Thai in a Pyrex container and handed Rafael the pot before placing the container in her fridge. Everything else she had used, Cal had helped clean while she cooked.

“Is that the last of it?” He asked, drying his hands as she wiped down the counter. The sleeves of his dress shirt had been rolled up so he wouldn’t get them wet and it was definitely a good look for him.

“It is.” Libby threw the paper towel into the trash can and moved closer to him.

“Thanks for cooking dinner.”

“I like cooking.”

“Have I mentioned you look really nice.” Rafael smiled, their bodies almost touching when she looked up at him.

“I didn’t even get a chance to change out of my work clothes.” Cal had thrown her whole evening off when he unexpectedly showed up. Thankfully, the beige pencil skirt and light blue button up top she had worn to work that day had been nice enough for a date, even if it wasn’t her first choice.

“How do your students concentrate?” Rafael smirked, closing the gap between them when he pulled her against him.

“I’m an engaging lecturer.” Libby smiled.

Her arms were folded around his neck when his lips met hers. Libby pushed up to her tip toes, running her hand through his hair, moaning softly when his arms tightened around her.

“Rafael...” She panted pulling back from his embrace.

“I promise I have no expectations.” He breathed.

“Do you want to watch a movie?”

“I rarely have time to sit and watch a movie anymore.” Rafael commented, more to himself than her.

“I have way too many to chose from, but sometimes picking the movie is half the fun.” Libby smiled, dragging him behind her to the wooden media console her television sat on, a blue decorative vase and white bowl next to it.

“You have a lot of movies to chose from... in there?” He asked lifting a brow.

The media console was short and wide, with three drawers on one side and two doors sliding in opposite directions along the other, and while it was on the larger side, it didn’t look big enough to house a lot of DVD’s plus a DVD player and other components.

“I found these plastic sleeves online a few years ago and ditched the clunky cases.” Libby replied, pulling out a bin containing three rows of movies to flip through, sitting in front of it. “The only ones I left in the cases are part of box sets.”

She kept them in alphabetical order so they were easy to locate if she had something in mind, and while she missed scanning the spines for what she wanted, flipping through them hadn’t been a hard adjustment. It had taken her a while to find a solution that would maintain the booklet art, which this did, letting her store five DVD’s in the space of about one DVD case. The amount of space this saved was definitely a necessity once she moved to New York.

“Did you have a specific movie in mind?”

Libby grinned and pulled him to sit next to her as she started flipping through them. “Have you seen 21?”

“Isn’t that about MIT students counting cards in Las Vegas?”

“It is?”

“It’s based on true events, correct?” He asked.

“Yes.” Libby smiled, pulling the movie out and setting it aside. “What about Fargo?” She held it up to show him when she got to it.

“I’ve seen it.”

“There’s no rule that says you can’t watch a movie more than once.” She chuckled, “No Country For Old Men?”

“You really like the Coen brothers. He smiled.

“He knows more about movies than he lets on...” Libby teased.

“I’ve seen that more recently than Fargo.” He smirked.

“Fine...” Libby flipped through the rest of her movies, not really seeing one she currently wanted to watch. “21 it is then.”

Rafael moved to the couch as she placed the movie in the DVD player and grabbed the remote from the top drawer before joining him.

“Know anyone who can count cards?” Rafael joked shortly after the movie started.

“Spence is banned from several casinos in Las Vegas, Laughlin, and Pahrump.”

“Spence?”

“Spencer... my ex with the BAU.” She stated.

“I take it he’s good with math.”

“Among other subjects.” Libby replied vaguely, letting their attention move back to the movie.

 

Libby stirred awake in a slight panic. She wasn’t in her bed and her body felt achy from the position she had been in. Her breathing normalized when her eyes adjusted and she realized she was on the couch in her living room and that she and Rafael had fallen asleep during the movie.

“Rafael.” She whispered, lifting her head off his shoulder.

He groaned as his body registered the uncomfortable position they were in. The uncomfortableness compounded by the fact that they were both still in their work clothes.

“What time is it?”

“One thirty.”

“We didn’t finish the movie.” He smirked.

“We can finish it next time.” Libby suggested as she stood.

“I need to call for a car.” Rafael sighed, pulling his phone from his pocket.

“You should stay. It’s late.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.” She nodded.

Rafael watched her curiously as she opened the coat closet after checking that the window and front door were secure.

“We feel asleep before I double checked that everything was locked.” Libby stated as though that explained her quick glance through the closet.

“Will you be checking every closet?” He chuckled when she checked the window and closet in her dining/office area.

“And the bathroom.” She smiled, pleased to see that this particular quirk humored him.

“I can sleep on the couch.” Rafael offered once they were in her room.

“Don’t be silly, my bed can accommodate both of us.”

“I don’t typically sleep in my suit.”

“I assume you have something on underneath it.” Libby smiled.

“Well, yes...”

“Boxers, briefs, or boxer briefs?” The corners of her mouth pulled up slightly as she quickly lifted her brows at him.

“Boxer briefs.” He smirked.

“And an undershirt?”

“Yes.”

“Sleep in that then.” She said, grabbing a pair of pajama shorts and a t-shirt from her dresser.

Rafael waited for her to leave before he stripped down to the garments she had mentioned, feeling slightly exposed as he laid his clothes neatly over a chair in the corner. He jumped a bit when she reentered the room, the length of the shorts and tightness of the t-shirt making him feel better about the amount of clothing he had on.

“Here.” She said, handing him an unopened toothbrush. “I used to travel a lot with the BAU and still have a habit of picking up a toothbrush every time I grocery shop.”

“Convenient for me.” He smiled, following her to the bathroom.

“Do you want me to get that light?” He asked.

They had just crawled in bed, but he noticed a light was left on in the kitchen.

“Will it bother you if it stays on?” Libby looked up at him as they laid facing each other.

“No.” Rafael replied, pulling her into his arms, kissing her.

“That’s good.” She breathed, nestling closer to him.

 

Libby woke to Rafael’s nose buried in the crook of her neck. Half his body was pressed against hers, his leg swung over one of her own, and his hand resting just below her left breast with his fingers and thumb spread on either side of it. Her arms were in turn, wrapped around him, the fingers of one hand gently nestled in his hair. She smiled when she felt him start to stir, the hand on her breast sliding upward so that he was officially groping her over her shirt.

“Jesus, I’m sorry.” He blurted, pulling his hand away as he became more awake and aware of her hardening nipple beneath his palm.

“Don’t be sorry,” Libby smiled running her hand through the hair behind his ear as he glanced down at her, “it was nice.”

“Nice.” He smirked.

“There’s something comfortable about waking up in your arms.”

“Are sure? It seems like I might have tried to squish you.” He chuckled.

“I’m sure.”

“If you’re up for swinging by my place, so I can shower and change, I’ll take you to breakfast.” Rafael offered, smiling when she nodded. She could always opt for a late lunch or maybe switch to dinner with Cal.

Libby was thankful she had washed her hair the day before, allowing her to quickly shower without bothering to get her hair wet, it was entirely too thick to try to dry while he waited. After using a little dry shampoo for texture, she braided her hair in a loose waterfall style braid giving it a half up look, pleased that her soft curls had relaxed into fairly decent looking waves. She didn’t continue the braid past where the two from either side met, instead secured it with a clip, letting the hair fall in waves blending in with the rest of her hair.

She quickly applied a minimal amount of makeup and dressed in jeans and a long sleeved green shirt that despite being fitted, hung loosely on her.

“Do I want to know how many times you’ve gone home in yesterdays suit that it looks that good on you the next day?” Libby smirked when she exited to find Rafael redressed and waiting with a cup of coffee he had poured for her from the pot he had made while she showered.

“It’s not a matter of frequency as much as tidiness.”

“Interesting...” She smiled, taking a sip of the coffee.

“What?”

“You don’t do this often either.”

“Are you ready?” He asked, the corners of his lips twitching upward.

“I am.”

 


	7. May 15th, 2009

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Episode Reference:  
> Lie To Me: S1 E11  
> Criminal Minds: S4 E25

May 15, 2009 (and the following week)

Washington D.C.

 

“Is everyone off, or just you?” Libby asked, cuddling closer to Reid on her couch.

“I received four calls yesterday to help with the current case. I think they’re in Flagstaff, Arizona.” Reid replied, setting the book he was reading down next to him.

“At least they are letting you rest today.” She grumbled.

“Why did you bring me to your place when they discharged me?” He hadn’t really thought to ask before. The morning had been filled with doctors and he had been tired, rambling off a list of things for her to grab from his place before falling asleep in her bed.

“I wanted to take care of you.” Libby smiled.

“You could have done that at my place.”

“You know I don’t sleep well in unfamiliar places.”

“My place isn’t unfamiliar, you’ve spent a lot of time there over the years.” Reid countered.

“But I’ve never slept there...”

“Does that mean you’ll never sleep there?”

Libby’s whole body tensed and she knew by the way Spencer looked at her that he had noticed.

“I honestly don’t know.” She sighed.

“What are you reading?” Reid asked changing the subject, he really didn’t care if they shared his bed or hers.

“Outliers.” Libby held the book up.

“Some of the concepts are a little over simplified, but it was an enjoyable read. I have read a few arguments against his 10,000 hour rule, mostly from the lack of data used, which I’d have to agree with, though it’s an interesting idea if not a bit obvious.”

“I like how he simplifies things. If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t know it well enough.”

“Albert Einstein.” Reid noted the author of the quote she had used, “and I see your point.”

Libby smiled and nestled closer when he folded his arms around her.

“What did you tell Lightman to get time off?”

“That you had been injured and I needed to take care of you.” She smiled, recalling the face Lightman had made when she explained they had started dating.

“Did he ask how I was injured?”

“He wouldn’t be Lightman if he hadn’t.”

“And what did you tell him?”

“The truth.” Libby smirked, knowing Reid was about to panic.

“Libby... The only reason you could know was because you still have security clearance. JJ and Hotch couldn’t even call their families to warn them and you told Lightman...”

“I told Lightman I couldn’t tell him... which is the truth. I couldn’t lie, he’d know. He pressed a bit, but finally excepted it.”

“You could have just said that...” He said sounding a bit exasperated.

“What fun would that have been.”

“You enjoy teasing me?”

“Immensely.” She smiled, pulling up to kiss him.

 

“What happened with your boyfriend that caused you to rush out of here last Wednesday?” Loker asked.

They were watching footage of interviews she and Foster had conducted earlier that morning with corrections officers at Arlington County Corrections. Drugs were becoming an epidemic and the Warden wanted to find out if one of his officers was supplying them.

“That’s their guy.” Libby stated.

“Are you sure?” Foster asked.

“Look at him, the reassuring gestures, the clenched teeth... how he puffs up when asked about influential inmates... If he’s not bringing the drugs in himself, he knows who is.”

“So you’re not going to answer my question?” Loker asked when Foster left to find Lightman so they could question the guard again.

“I’m not.” Libby smiled.

 

“Libby, hi.” Reid said, answering his phone. They had recently delivered their profile but were still discussing possible leads.

“That’s Libby? Tell her hi for me.” JJ smiled as she stood to stretch.

They all decided a short break to move a bit would be good, though none of them left the room.

“She says hi.” Reid said, relaying Libby’s response to JJ.

“I guess you two worked things out.” Rossi noted.

“We did.” Reid stated.

Libby chuckled on her end of the line, humored to be able to hear her old coworkers, though she wished she could see their faces so she’d know if they were teasing him or just making conversation. She could, however, picture the amused smile on Morgan’s face which was enough to make her chuckle again.

“What’s so funny?” He questioned as he left the room so they’d stop watching his conversation for clues.

“Do they know?”Libby asked.

“Know what?”

“About us?”

“Just Morgan. I don’t even want to know how Garcia will react.” Reid sighed.

“Oh... I kind of want to be there when Penelope finds out.” Libby chuckled.

“Why?” Reid asked, truly perplexed as to why Garcia’s reaction interested her.

“Never mind. Are you going to be in Canada for a while?”

“Seems that way. Why?”

“I just miss you.” She replied instead of what concerned her... The fact that he was gone, that she didn’t know what was happening or what kind of unsub they were investigating... the other thoughts going through her head that she would continually brush aside. She hated this part, but she knew it was part of the package.

“I’ll check in tonight.” Reid assured her.

“No matter how late?”

“Promise.”

“Ok.” Libby exhaled.

 

“You look terrible.” Loker said when she got to work the next day.

“Thanks.” Libby replied sarcastically.

“Late night?”

“Not how you mean. I couldn’t sleep.”

“That’s less interesting.”

“Will you two quit babbling and get in here?” Lightman grumbled poking his head out of a door not far from where they stood.

“What’s up?” Libby smiled.

“What’s up?” Lightman mimicked not hiding his annoyance in her word choice.

“Seriously Cal, what’d you need?”

“Staff meeting.”

“Since when do we have staff meetings?” Libby grumbled.

“That’s what I said.” Torres commiserated as Libby took the seat next to her.

“Alright, let’s not waste too much time on this. We’re being sued.” Lightman stated, pulling everyone’s attention to him.

“Some of you worked on the Joseph Hollin case. He was the banker whose daughter ran a Ponzi scheme with his investors money. They’re suing everybody that was involved in the failed attempt to recover his assets, and that includes us.” Foster explained.

“So, our lawyer is going to want to talk to you individually. The damages could run into hundreds of millions, which I don’t happen to have, so do your best to answer the questions as truthfully as possible. All right?” Lightman added.

Libby remained seated, watching curiously as Loker quickly followed Torres out of the meeting.

“You’re thinking hard.” Lightman said, pulling a chair next to her.

“What are you up to?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know.” Lightman smirked.

“When do I meet with the lawyer?” Libby asked, mostly to get a read on Lightman’s response.

“No need love, you didn’t work on that case.”

She eyed him for a minute trying to determine what he was hiding.

“Give up yet?” He asked.

“Will you at least tell me after?”

“Maybe.”

“How did Torres and Loker not notice?” Lightman had betrayed very little signs of deception but Foster was not nearly as good at lying as he was.

“Guilt has a funny way of making us see what we fear is true.” He replied.

“What are you working on?”

“Why?”

“I need a distraction.”

“Alright come on.” Libby grinned as she followed him out of the room.

“Where are we going?”

“Lunch.”

“That’s not exactly what I had in mind...” Libby muttered.

 

Libby had joined Loker in the research lab when Reid texted late that afternoon.

“Heading back tonight.”

“What time?”

“Should be back at Quantico by six.” He replied.

“I’ll cook tonight, grab what you need to stay over and be at my place around eight.”

“What are you grinning at your phone for?” Loker asked.

“Spence will be back tonight.” Libby felt lighter and grinned even larger.

“Ok, seriously, stop. You, giddy, just isn’t right.”

“I’m a happy person, Loker. Get over it.”

He smiled and shook his head, returning his attention to his work.

“What was up with you an Torres earlier?”

“What?” He replied.

“You just lied.” Libby accused. In the six months she had been with The Lightman Group she had never seen him lie. He subscribed to this idea of radical truth and she had grown rather fond of it, despite sometimes wanting to tell him he didn’t need to vocalize every thought that went through his head.

“I said what, how is that lying?” He countered.

“It was evasive and your still deflecting. Not to mention the fear I saw.”

“You’re as bad as Lightman.”

“What did you do?” Libby pushed.

“Nothing.”

“You really are a terrible liar.”

“It’s not a big deal.” He lied again and she shook her head.

“Does it have to do with this morning?”

“Libby...”

“Whatever it is, does Torres know?”

Loker didn’t respond, deciding instead to ignore her questions.

“Did you ask her to lie for you?”

“Will you let this go.” Loker grumbled, pushing himself out of his chair so he could go somewhere she wasn’t.

“No. Whatever it is, Lightman will find out and what happens to Torres when he does? You have an Ivy League degree to fall back on. What? Is she just supposed to go back to screening baggage at the airport? Did you even think about her?” She scolded.

Loker was quiet.

“Lying doesn’t suit you.” Libby huffed as she left the room.

 

“Come in.” Lightman called from the other side of his closed door when she knocked.

“Hey Cal.”

“You look disgruntled.” He mused.

“What was this morning about?” She asked, her eyes darting between his as she watched his reaction.

“It was a test.”

“For who?”

“Torres.” Lightman stated.

“Did she pass?”

“She did. I need loyalty here.”

“So you wanted her to lie.” Libby smirked, shaking her head slightly.

“Were you coming to tattle?” He asked, lifting a brow.

“No, to get information. I don’t even know what she lied about.” Libby replied, a small smile forming.

“You think you’re clever.”

“I know I’m clever.” She quipped, turning to leave.

 

Libby had just check the temperature on the salmon when her doorbell rang. Quickly she made her way to let Spencer in, barely letting him set his bag down before she kissed him.

“I know you stress when I’m gone, but I do like this part.”

“Shut up.” She chuckled, pulling him back to her lips.

“I thought you mentioned food.” He panted, pressing his forehead to hers.

“Shit.” She mumbled, rushing back to the kitchen.

He leaned against the counter as she check the temperature of the salmon, seeming satisfied with the reading, and pulled it, along with roasted potato’s from the oven. Libby then plated the salmon and potato’s along with broccoli and carrots she had steamed.

“What happened with your case?” She asked as they sat to eat.

“They killed eighty nine people...” Reid stated, looking a little drained.

“We can talk about something else.”

“Like what?”

“Anything... maybe nothing...”

“How do you talk about nothing?” He frowned.

“Technically we’re doing it now.”

Reid furrowed his brow, not exactly seeing the point.

“Never mind.” Libby chuckled under her breath, “How’s the team?”

“They’re good. Morgan took the case the hardest I think...”

“Why?”

“The fact that they’ve been killing the whole time he’s been with the BAU and we didn’t know about them... wondering how many more we don’t know about... and then the pigs.” Reid said taking a bite of potato.

“Pigs?”

“The unsubs lived on a pig farm.”

“And...”

“We didn’t find any bodies, just shoes.”

Libby closed her eyes, regretting pushing for answers. “I’m really glad I didn’t cook pork tonight.”

“Were you thinking about cooking pork?” Reid asked.

“No. Do you want to see the Walead Beshty exhibit at the Hirshhorn tomorrow?”

“You’ve been wanting to see that.”

“I have.” Libby smiled.


	8. October 12th, 2013

October 12, 2013

New York City

 

“Morning.” Rafael smiled when her sleepy gaze met his.

“Morning.” She said, returning his smile as she stretched her arms around him.

Rafael pulled her tighter against him, placing a soft kiss on her forehead. This was the third morning this week she had woken up in his arms. The previous two mornings had consisted of sighs and excuses as they both prolonged the inevitable departure so they wouldn’t be late to work. This morning was different. Today was Saturday and neither of them had made any plans aside from spending the day together.

“Do you mind if I shower?”

“Not at all, I’ll get coffee started.” Libby smiled, forcing herself out of bed.

Libby grinned as he made his way to her bathroom in the same undergarments he had worn that first night he slept in her bed, the clothes he had worn yesterday bundled in his arms. She had only met this man ten days ago, but there was familiarity with him she hadn’t known before... at least not this quickly.

“My turn.” She smirked when he entered the kitchen dress and in search of coffee.

Rafael took her hand as she passed and gently tugged her towards him, his lips pressing against hers. “Take a quick one.” He breathed.

“I’ll see what I can do.”

It was unseasonably warm for October and most of the day would have temperatures in the high sixties to low seventies so she opted to wash her hair and let it air dry. Quickly, she braided her wet hair into a loose French braid that would settle into nice waves when she decided to let it down later, and glanced at her reflection in the mirror. Libby sighed and closed her eyes, turning from the mirror to get dressed, tensing when her own hand skimmed the scar just above her left hipbone. They normally didn’t bother her anymore, she had become accustomed to them, but here they were again, holding her back from moving forward. It wasn’t the scars themselves that were preventing her from taking the next step with Rafael, but the questions they would incite. The only other person who had ever seen them had already known the details of what happened. Libby rolled her eyes at herself. “They’re really not that bad...” She scolded softly under her breath. And they weren’t, most of her injuries had been internal or small wounds that had healed long ago. Turner had had no intention of letting her die before she begged him to do so.

“Purple is a good color for you.” Rafael exhaled when she joined him in the kitchen wearing a lilac dress with sleeves reaching to just above her elbows, a high neckline, and a-line skirt.

“Thanks.” She smiled, taking his hand when he offered.

“After I change clothes, I thought we could eat breakfast at this fantastic diner close to my place.”

“Where do you live?”

“Not far, it’s about a ten minute drive, and on the other side of Central Park.” He replied.

“Do you mind if we walk?”

“We’d have to cut through Central Park.”

“I know. I typically jog there every morning but someone has caused me to skip a few mornings this week.” Libby smiled.

“A morning walk could be nice.” He smirked, guiding her out of her apartment once she slipped a pair of flats on.

 

His living room was warm and inviting, contrasting her more light and airy space. A comfortable looking brown leather couch sat in the living room along with bookshelves that lined a wall to the right of the entrance. His television was small, almost an afterthought, giving her the impression that he read... or more likely worked, more than he turned it on.

“Is the tv just for the news at night?”

“Mostly the morning.” He smirked.

Libby chuckled to herself, continuing to look around his open concept living space. It wasn’t the first time she had been in his apartment, but she had been purposely made a point not to notice much that first time.

“I’m going to regret bringing you here aren’t I?”

“Find me a book and I’ll quit profiling your apartment.” She smiled, pushing up to kiss him.

“What will the book tell you about me?”

“Fine, I’ll check my email.” Libby pulled her phone out of her purse and wiggled it at him as she plopped down on his couch.

She responded to a few emails from students with questions on an assignment and one from the assistant to the department chairs wanting an official list of classes and times she’d like to teach next semester so they could get everything together before registration began. It was an easy enough response since she liked her current schedule. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays she taught her behavioral analysis class once at nine and then again at ten, and on Tuesday’s and Thursdays the profiling class at nine thirty and one.

“Did you you finish with your emails?” Rafael smiled as he exited his room in jeans, a casual green button up shirt that he left untucked.

“It was a productive, but I’m never done with emails.”

 

Breakfast was followed by a museum and then another walk through Central Park. Neither of them seeming to want their time together to end as they took turns suggesting something else to do that the other readily excepted.

“We could finish that movie.” Libby suggested when they reached her apartment after a rather late dinner.

“I might fall asleep again.” He smirked.

“Yes, because sleeping next to you is so terrible.” She teased, holding her door open for him, smiling when he entered.

 

Rafael pulled her into his arms after she locked the door, gently pushing the strands of hair that had worked their way loose from her braid behind her ear. Libby reached her hands into his hair as their lips connected, moaning when his arm tightened around her waist pressing her against him. Libby felt his hand grip her hair close to her scalp, tugging her head back as he deepened the kiss.

“Rafael...” She panted, looking up at him.

“I... I have no expectations.” He breathed, lessening his hold on her.

“That’s less convincing this time.” Libby smirked, taking his hand in hers as she guided him towards her bedroom.

The kiss resumed, her hands unbuttoning his shirt as she walked him backwards towards her bed, sliding her hands under it as she pushed the shirt off his shoulders.

Rafael’s hands started on her hips, his fingers lightly traced the soft fabric, up her sides and around her back until he found the zipper on the dress. He felt her fingers breach the top of his jeans, gently tugging them as she unfasten the top button first and then the zipper. Libby wriggled out of her dress as he stepped out of the pants pooled at his feet.

“Jesus...” He muttered under his breath at the sight of her.

To say she was fit would be putting it mildly. Her softly sculpted abs, thighs, and arms were well defined in the dim light provided by the slit in the curtain covering the one window in her room... the dim light that also camouflaging the scars she’d have to explain at some point. Aside from running in Central Park every morning she took multiple martial arts classes and met with a personal trainer once a week.

“It’s best to be prepared.” She panted, pulling him on top of her as she laid back on her bed.

“Prepared?”

“Never mind.” Libby shook her head dismissively, her lips finding his again, deciding now wasn’t the time to get into the psychosis behind her obsession with staying fit.

It wasn’t long before their skin pressed against each other and Rafael’s lips and tongue seemed to be exploring her neck and shoulders, continuing downward, her breath hitching when he tongued her nipple. One hand gripped his hair as the other blindly rummaged through her nightstand drawer.

“What are you looking for?” The noise peaking his interest.

He was glancing up at her from just below her breast and she was thankful for the dim light that hid her blush.

“There’s a box of condoms in there somewhere.”

Rafael smirked and pulled himself up to look in the drawer, pulling the box out when he found it and held it up for her.

“Check the date. I’m pretty sure they moved here with me.” Libby stated, again thankful he couldn’t see her blush.

“Looks like you still have a good year left.” He smiled, pulling one out of the box and laying it on the bed next to them.

He kissed her lips before working is way down her body again, this time focusing his attention on the other breast, then down her stomach, her hipbone, inner thigh... her hand gripped back in his hair when he flicked his tongue against her.

“Fuck...” Libby groaned as his tongue swirl against the sensitive skin, bucking slightly almost testing the grip he had on her hips. Her chest rising and falling rapidly, as she tried to control her breathing, the sensation building within her taking over, her free hand gripping the sheets. An indiscernible sound escaped her throat when he inserted two fingers, intentionally curling them to skim the spot just inside her. Rafael smiled when her body jerked against the arm he had holding her in place, but didn’t let up.

“My god...” She moaned, her body buckling causing her head and shoulders to lift off the bed.

“Ok... ok...”

Her panted pleas eliciting a small smirk as he kissed back up her torso, finder her lips again.

“The condom.” Libby breathed when she felt him between her legs.

Rafael reached beside them to where the condom remained on the bed, tearing it opened before sitting back on his heals to roll it on. He settled himself back on top of her and slowly eased inside, both of them moaning, their lips barely parting, his hands gripped tightly in her hair as he began to thrust.

His kisses moved down her jawline, neck, settling on her nipple the hand not supporting him moved between them, his thumb circling her clit. Libby’s breathing became labored, her fingers running through his hair as her back arched giving him access to suck more of her breast into his mouth.

“Fuck...” She groaned again, not in complete control of her body as it shuddered beneath him. Rafael continued to swirl his thumb against her, slightly softer now, as he pulled back to watch her, waiting for her to finish before he removed his hand. His lips pressed against hers briefly and then moved to her neck, grunting against it, as he pushed towards his own release.

Rafael’s breathing was heavy as his weight pressed against her, the pressure comforting, almost soothing.

“I’ll be right back.”

She watched as he made his way to dispose of the condom, smiling when he quickly returned, pulling her under the covers with him when he crawled back in her bed.

“Do the scars bother you?” She almost whispered.

“What scars?”

“You’re sweet, but I know you can feel them.”

Libby tensed as she waited for his response, her eyes intently trained on his. She didn’t normally blatantly set out to read someone she was dating, but this... this she needed to know his truthful reaction to.

“I barely noticed.” Rafael smiled softly.

“Liar.” She smirked.

“Can I flip the light on?”

“Why?” Libby clipped, every insecurity she had screaming at her to say no.

“So you can see they don’t bother me.” He said, running his fingers through her hair that could barely be called braided anymore.

Libby laid there, her body refusing to relax as she thought about the many ways this could go wrong... he could run his hand across one tenderly or try to kiss them... ask how she got each one... they weren’t areas she wanted attention drawn to, but places she rather ignore, memories she’d prefer not relive. It’s not that she cared if he touched them, he had touched them countless times only moments ago. It was the act of addressing them, acknowledging their existence, that she feared. Still, she took a deep breath and turned in his arms, reaching for the lamp on her nightstand.

She hadn’t turned to face him, but she knew his eyes were scanning her back. The long line that ran across her shoulder blades, the burns marks that scattered her back. She exhaled the breath she had been holding when he didn’t touch her and turned to face him.

“What’d you expect?” He smiled softy.

“I... I’m not sure...” Relief washing over her when she saw his reaction. That he wasn’t going to run because of what had happened to her, because that was what she was truly afraid of... not the scars. There were more scars on her chest, stomach, thighs, and arms, but for the most part they were small and aside from the number of them, wouldn’t be terribly noticeable.

“How much do you want to tell me?” Rafael asked.

“I honestly would prefer to not relive any of it.”

“Ok.” He smiled, tenderly kissing her.

“You’re really ok with not knowing?” Libby questioned.

“It was years ago?”

“Almost five.” She nodded.

“Then I assume you’ve worked through what you’ve needed to.”

“I’m still a work in progress.” The visible scars didn’t account for half of what she had been through... broken ribs and bruises heal.

“Then you can let me in as you need to.”

“Ok.” Libby breathed, running her hand over his shoulder to the back of his neck. “What were your plans for the rest of the night?”

“Are you asking if I’m sleeping here?” Rafael smirked.

“Yes.”

“I’m not leaving you alone to overthink what just happened.” He smiled.

“I’ll be right back then.”

Libby slipped her robe on and made her way through the apartment checking the windows and front door. Dropping the robe to the floor, she crawled back under the covers, smiling when his arms wrapped around her.

 


	9. November 18th, 2009

November 18, 2009 (plus a week or so)

Washington D.C.

 

“Seriously if I have to watch this video one more time...” Libby grumbled, pausing the video of the woman some billionaire asked them to investigate before he popped the question.

“Snooping into peoples private lives not you thing?” Loker joked.

“I’m over qualified to be do PI work no matter how much he’s paying.” Libby huffed.

“And I’m not?”

“She’s clearly in love with him... and his money. This is what prenups are for.” Torres added, humored at Loker’s last statement... well more the offense he took at Libby’s statement.

“Libby.” Lightman called, poking his head in the lab, “come with me.”

“Thank god.” She smiled, following him. “Please tell me you have a new case.”

“I don’t, you do.”

Libby furrowed her brow at him.

“SSA Morgan wants you to meet the BAU in Hampton, Virginia.” Lightman added.

“Ok.”

“Ok?” Lightman questioned. He had expected an argument.

“I can drive to Hampton and Spence will be there if I have to stay the night.” Libby smiled, texting Morgan for a location to meet once she got there.

“I still want to have dinner with the two of you.” Lightman yelled after her as she left.

Libby waved him off turning the corner.

 

“Hi Libby.” JJ smiled when she joined them outside the home of the family who had been killed.

“Hey.” Libby said, biting back a smirk when Reid smiled at her.

They filled her in on the details- the unsub only took what he could carry, there was no sexual assault, the mother had been dragged out of the house indicating one unsub, that in both cases the girls died last and had been suffocated, not shot like the rest of the family.

“Hey Garcia, you’re on speaker.” JJ stated, holding her phone out for the others to hear.

“We just got a call from Virginia Super Max Prison. One of the inmates there has received two envelopes in the last two days. First envelope had clippings of the Newport News killings. Second envelope had clippings of the Downey family. In the second envelope was a note saying, “look at what I’ve done” and both pieces of mail have been signed by an admirer.” Garcia said.

“Who’s the inmate?” JJ asked.

“That’s the part that... Karl Arnold.” Garcia stammered.

“The Fox?” JJ questioned.

“He’s back.” Garcia said.

“It’s similar.” Hotchner stated as JJ hung up the phone.

“Same MO, family annihilator, absent father, wedding rings...” Libby said, speaking for the first time.

“You think we’re working with a copycat?” The local agent they were working with asked.

“It’s too early to say.” Libby replied.

“Libby’s right, it could bias the profile.” Reid interjected.

“Not to mention the police, media, and military would jump all over it.” Prentiss added.

“Until we’re positive none of this information gets out. Hotch you gave evidence at Arnolds trial I think you should go see him.” Morgan said.

“I’d like to take Prentiss and Libby with me.” Hotchner replied.

“No.” Libby said rather forcefully.

“I’m sorry?” Hotchner questioned. Even though he had stepped down as unit chief, at least temporarily, he wasn’t used to people countering him.

“That’s where Turner is incarcerated.” Reid answered when Libby froze.

“I can call Lightman to meet you there.” Libby offered, regaining her composure.

“That wont be necessary.” Hotchner stated.

 

 

Libby relaxed once they were back at the precinct, going over the case, pleased that no one had pushed for her to go. Truthfully, all of them understood. It’s one thing to know your would be killer is alive in a maximum security prison, it’s quite another to be forced to walk by his cell, which was a possibility with the way that particular prison was laid out.

After determining that the girl dying last was a link between the killings and a possible signature Libby started looking at the information Garcia sent over on the dads with Reid.

“Are you ok?” Reid asked softly.

“I’m here, he’s there.” Libby shrugged.

Reid watched her for a moment as she read the files on her laptop.

“Hotch just called, Karl Arnold’s admirer has nothing to do with these murders.” Morgan announced.

Both Reid and Libby looked up from the table they were sitting at. “He’s staying to figure out what the articles are about?” Libby questioned, most of her attention going back to what she was reading.

“Yes, why?” Morgan asked.

“The articles and timing are too coincidental, someone’s trying to get your attention.”

 

Reid was rambling on about mass graves when she pulled her thoughts out of the walk through of the house she had done earlier, mentally making her way back through seeing if they had missed something.

“Have you looked internationally.” Libby suggested as they discussed the lack of mass graves in the U.S.

JJ quickly got Garcia to search Interpol for prints in murders matching the one they had found.

“Prentiss thinks it might be a woman.” Morgan informed them, hanging up his phone.

“That’s one rationale for why the girls are killed last.” Libby said.

“And why there’s no sexual element.” Rossi added.

Garcia found a hit on the prints in three crimes in three different cities... Zagreb 1998, Modena, Italy 2000, London, England 2007. All of the girls were younger than fifteen, and assuming they represented the unsub, that put her age somewhere in her late twenties.

They had just delivered the profile when Garcia called with employee records of a site linking all the victims. One employee stood out matching their profile and almost as soon as the call ended they were out the door, heading to the address on file.

 

“You know, I’m kind of glad you were shot.” Libby chuckled.

“That seems a bit harsh.” Reid replied.

Both of them had been left behind, her, because she wasn’t and agent anymore and him, because he was still hobbling around on one crutch after taking a bullet to the leg in September.

“Fine... I’m not happy you were shot, but I am more relaxed when you’re gone knowing you’re not participating in this part.” Libby smiled, moving to sit next to him on the desk he was perched on.

“It is the most dangerous part, did you know that over...”

“Maybe don’t quote me statistics on how many agents are killed while apprehending a suspect each year...” Libby interrupted, placing her hand on his.

“That wouldn’t really help would it?” Reid sighed.

“No.”

“How do you know to stop me before I say something that will make your anxiety worse?”

“I can read you better than most anyone and...” Libby chuckled to herself before continuing, “you tend to have a lead into your stats. It gives me ample time to assess your statement and stop you if needed.”

“So you like that I over explain?”

Her eyes glanced back and forth between his when she leaned closer to him. “You wouldn’t be you if you didn’t.” She whispered, giving him a quick kiss. “Oh, by the way... Cal wants to have dinner sometime.” She added, pulling away from him to find three sets of eyes staring at them.

“I guess you really did work things out.” Rossi chuckled.

“Seems Morgan didn’t say anything.” Libby smiled, messing Reid’s hair when she noticed how pink he was.

“You knew and didn’t say anything.” JJ scolded Morgan.

“It wasn’t my information to tell.” Morgan chuckled.

“How long?” JJ asked.

“Since April 17th.” Reid stated.

“You’ve been together for seven months?” Rossi questioned, the surprise clear in his voice.

“And you call yourselves profilers.” Libby teased.

“We weren’t exactly looking.” Rossi countered.

“We should head back.” Morgan interjected, hoping to get some paper work done before he headed home.

“Please tell me I can ride back with you.” Reid almost begged.

“You can.” Libby chuckled.

“Libby, you should come in with Spencer when you get to Quantico.” JJ suggested.

“Why?” Reid asked, his eyes narrowing.

“So I can introduce Garcia to your girlfriend.” JJ replied, unsuccessfully hiding her smile.

 

“You know the teasing will eventually stop.” Libby chuckled after Reid had spent half the drive rambling on about they still teased him about Lila. “That was because you made out with an actress in her pool while you were supposed to be keeping her safe from her stalker. This is different, I promise.”

“How so?”

“Because that was completely out of character for you.” She chuckled.

“And dating you isn’t?”

“Ok... no you don’t really date much, but that was still different. I promise they are happy for us.”

“You read them?”

“I did. The teasing is all in good fun and it will die down, sooner than you think.” Libby smiled.

 

“Oh my god... oh my god... This is a prank.” Garcia seemed to bounce toward them, grinning from ear to ear when Libby and Reid walked into the bullpen.

“It’s not a prank.” Libby smiled, giving her a hug.

“You don’t know how happy this makes me.” Garcia smiled, hugging her again. “And you...” She smiled moving closer to Reid, “don’t listen to a word he says.” Her fingers were pointing accusingly at Morgan.

“Alright, now...” Morgan said, feigning offense.

“Hotch?” JJ said, noticing the look on his face when he rushed passed them to his office.

“Foyet’s back.” Prentiss stated, joining the group gathered around Libby.

“That’s who sent the articles?” Libby questioned, she hadn’t been there for the Foyet case but Reid had told her about it. The fact that Hotchner’s wife and son were in WITSEC never sitting well with her anxiety.

“Yes.” Prentiss said, smiling briefly at Libby.

“I guess you have your next case then.” Libby sighed, gathering herself to leave.

“I’ll come over later tonight.” Reid offered, taking her hand in his.

“Ok.” She smiled, ignoring the look the others gave them as she squeezed his hand.

“Did I miss something?” Prentiss chuckled as Libby left.

She would have said something, subtly asked them to lay off Reid a bit, but she knew they would switch gears momentarily, and all discussion would be on Foyet, saving Reid from teasing for the foreseeable future.

 

“You seem distracted.” Lightman noted as he watched Libby push her lunch around her plate.

“I am, that doesn’t mean I can’t do my job.”

“Which do you want then, find out who this kids biological parents are or who’s responsible for the Black Friday trampling?”

“Uh... the Lindbergh baby.” Libby grinned, tossing what remained of her lunch and heading to find Foster.

“He’s far from the Lindbergh baby...” Lightman called, following after her.

“Yes, but the some coke head stole me from her dealer and sold me baby doesn’t have the same ring to it.”

“Reynolds found the drug dealers parole officer. I want to talk with him and see what he knows.” Foster stated when they entered her office.

 

Libby didn’t get to do much as Lightman and Foster talked with the former parole officer.

“Why do you look annoyed.” Lightman noted as they headed back into the office, “you do realize we found the kids father.”

“And I’m happy about that, I just feel I would have contributed more actual work if I had stayed and worked with Torres and Loker.” Libby sighed. She should have known Cal would do most of the talking and since he and Foster had been together for so long, she went along with his transitions more smoothly than Libby would have.

“It didn’t help with your distraction did it?” Lightman questioned.

“Not really...” Libby sighed.

“What’s bothering you?”

“Nothing, go introduce the kid to his dad.”

“I will once you tell me what’s bothering you.” Lightman said, pulling her to a stop in the hallway.

“The case the BAU is working is personal. Hotchner’s family has been threatened and...”

“And it reminds you of why you left.” Lightman finished her thought.

“Yes and no... it’s different... I hate being reminded of the risk they put themselves in but mostly I’m concerned for Hotch.” Libby sighed.

Lightman tilted his head while looked at her softly. “Go teach Loker something.”

“That’s your pep talk?” She chuckled.

“Yes.”

 

Libby couldn’t focus on her book so she found a movie to watch instead. She hadn’t heard from Reid all day and was about to text him when there was a knock at her door. Peeking out the peephole, she saw him standing there, but something wasn’t right.

“What happened?” She asked, letting him in.

Reid’s eyes bounce back and forth between hers, wondering whether or not he should tell her everything.

“Foyet’s dead.” He said.

“What about Hotch’s family?”

“Jack’s with him now.”

“And Haley?” Libby asked, though part of her knew.

Reid shook his head, unable to find the words.

Libby pulled him into her arms. “Are you ok?” Reid finally spoke.

“I’m fine.” She replied, ignoring the little voice reminding her that even being connected to the BAU could get you killed... but then again, it wasn’t death she was afraid of... at least not her death. If it had been Spencer... “How’s Hotch?”

“He’s holding it together for Jack.”

“And you?” Libby asked, running her hand through his hair as she looked up at him.

“I’ve processed it.” And he had. He had been concerned with how Libby would react to the news, not wanting to make her anxiety worse, but just as the rest of the team had done, he compartmentalized.

Libby took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. She had been trained to do the same and resigned herself to. If not, the thoughts would erode away the process she had made.


	10. October 21st, 2013

October 21, 2013 (through the rest of the month)

New York City

 

“I really hate election years...” Libby grumbled, flipping the news off.

The only thing they seemed to be talking about were the two front runners for the mayors election and she had seen both of them speak enough to know who she wouldn’t be voting for.

“I’m surprised you canceled class.” Rafael hummed, pulling her against him as he planted kisses on her neck.

“I could say the same about you calling in.” She smiled when he moved on top of her.

“What should we do with our self made three day weekend?” He smirked.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m not planning to leave my bed... except maybe to answer the door for whatever food we order.” He had been kissing his way down to her chest and her voice hitched when fingers reached between her legs.

“All day?” He questioned, his eyes meeting hers from beneath her breast, his fingers unrelenting.

“If you have the stamina.” She teased, managing more control of her voice than she had expected.

“Are you implying I’m old?”

“Older than me.” It was intended to come off teasing again, but Rafael timed the insertion of two fingers so that she took a sharp intake of air.

“I’m pretty sure I can keep up.” He smirked, sitting back on his heels to watch her wriggle when he curled his fingers while simultaneously circling her clit with his thumb.

“Come here.” Libby half moaned, gesturing for him to lean forward.

Rafael complied, enjoying the gentle vibrations from her moans as they kissed, his fingers continuing to stimulate appreciative groans from her. Libby ran her left hand through his hair, her right reaching between them softly stroking him, her grip becoming firmer as he did. Soon both of them were panting, Rafael’s forehead pushing into the pillow her head rested on.

“Fuck.” She groaned, her head tilting back, her body jerking beneath him.

Libby brought both hands to his cheeks, pulling his lips to hers as she rolled him to his back, straddling him. She kissed down his neck, chest, slowing as she reached his hips, taking him in her hand again. He watched as she stroked him a few times before lowering herself, licking him from base to tip, making eye contact when she took him in her mouth.

Rafael pulled up to his elbows for a better view as she adjusted to take him in further. “Jesus...” He groaned when her nose pressed against his pelvis, her tongue brushing along the underside. His fingers gripped in her hair as she bobbed, moaning each time she repeated the tongue motion. “Libby...” He breathed, gently tugging her head back so she’d look up at him again.

“Your eye’s are filled with both arousal and desperation, so you’re going to have to explain why you’re stopping me.” She smiled.

Rafael smirked and tossed a condom at her.

“Saving your energy?” Libby chuckled when he gripped her thighs and pulled her forward so that she was hovering above him once the condom was in place.

“You’ve implied I’m going to need it.” He smirked.

 

“Are you hungry?” Libby asked, turning in his arms to face him.

“Starved actually.”

“I have a stack of menus for places that deliver. Give me a minute.”

Libby gave him a quick kiss before skipping out of the bedroom toward the kitchen, no longer bothering to grab the robe.

“Pick whichever one you want.” She said dropping them on his lap as she climbed back under the covers to sit next to him.

“Chinese?”

Rafael held up the menu.

“That’s fine with me.”

Rafael called the order in while she flipped through the channels. Not finding anything she really wanted to watch she put the news back on but kept the volume low.

“How long until food gets here?” Libby asked cuddling closer to him under her covers.

“Thirty minutes.”

“Good. I really don’t feel like getting dressed yet.”

“Why would you need to get dressed?”

“To answer the door when our food gets here.”

Rafael lifted his eyebrows and gestured to himself.

“I’m still putting something on to eat.” She chuckled.

“Maybe that skimpy little robe you like to wear.” He smirked.

“I can manage that.”

“Which one are you voting for?” Rafael asked, his attention moving to the news she had turned on. The incessant discussion of the mayoral race still going on.

“Neither.” She huffed.

“You have to vote.”

“I do? I don’t remember that being a requirement.” Libby chuckled.

“You’re former FBI...”

“All the more reason to stay unbiased.” Libby interrupted.

“You seriously don’t have a preference?”

“I mean issue wise I’d vote for that Munoz guy, but...”

“But what?” Rafael pressed.

“He has got to be the least genuine person I have ever seen speak.”

“What does that mean?”

“He lies... constantly.”

“Don’t most politicians.” He quipped.

“Not like this.”

“And how’s that?” Rafael huffed.

“I’ve offended you.” Libby noted, looking up at him.

“Alex is one of my oldest friend.”

Libby glance between the screen and Rafael. “Maybe he’s the man you think he is. I don’t know the guy, I just know he lies, not why he lies. It could be he’s over playing the part of a politician.” Though she doubted it.

 

“Do you want to meet for dinner later?” She texted on Friday. Libby knew he had picked up a case but he had been fairly vague in the brief conversations they had exchanged over the phone.

“I wish. I’m going to be working most of the weekend. The detectives have found information we can’t sit on until Monday.” He had called instead of texting back.

“I could bring you something.” Libby offered.

“Liv brought in sandwiches for everyone, otherwise I’d definitely take you up on the offer.” She could tell he had smiled.

“I guess I’ll let you get back to work.”

“I really should. I’ll call you when this nightmare of a case is over.” Rafael sighed.

“Ok.”

Libby sighed and pulled out her laptop to order a pizza. The only thing on television was pundits talking about the upcoming election. Rolling her eyes she flipped over to Netflix and started looking for a movie or television show to watch.

 

Libby was just wrapping up class on Tuesday when her phone dinged with a message from Rafael.

“Dinner?”

They hadn’t done more than text or talk on the phone for a week now. She had seen the news though and knew the case he was working involved his old friend and candidate for mayor, Alex Munoz. Her proclivity to ignore news stories involving politicians changed when Rafael’s name had drawn her back to the screen Monday morning as she got ready for work.

“What time?”

“I’ll be at your place by six.” He replied.

“Do you want me to cook or go out?”

“I’d rather stay in but it’s up to you whether we order delivery or you cook.”

Libby smiled and quickly stopped by her office to exchange lecture notes and then headed home, making a quick stop by the grocery store on her way.

 

Dinner was just about finished when Rafael knocked on her door.

“Hey.” Libby grinned, pulling him into her apartment and locking the door.

“Something smells good.” He smiled as she wrapped her arms around him, erasing all space between them.

“A week is too long to go without physical contact.” She purred, pressing her lips to his.

“I won’t let it happen again.” He smirked when she dragged him to the kitchen.

“Rafael...” She paused turning from the food she was checking to look at him. “Are we exclusive?”

The second half of October had been much different than the first half when it came to the amount of time they had spent together and Libby wanted to know where they stood. She could handle his work taking him away from her, but the more she got to know him the more she knew she wanted a defined relationship.

Rafael smiled and pulled her against him. “Oh, we’re exclusive.”

“Good.”

“Good?” He chuckled.

“I never was good at sharing... only child issues.” She grinned.

“I guess I have the same issues then.” He smiled but the corners of his eyes never creased and she knew something was bothering him.

“You thought of Alex as family?” You couldn’t turn the television on without seeing the story all over the news. Alex Munoz accusing ADA Rafael Barba and the NYPD of trying to set him up. Hell, she had watched him address the media personally only an hour before Rafael got to her place.

“You’ve watched television I see.” Rafael smiled, trying to make light of how hard the case had actually been on him.

“You did the right thing.”

“Still sucks.” He sighed.

“I didn’t say it was the easy thing.”

“What’s it like always knowing if the person is what they seem to be? Always knowing if someone is telling you the truth?”

“Sometimes people lie in order to protect you in someway... because the truth could hurt worse... and while I value honesty, there have been times I wished I could have believed those lies.” Libby sighed.


	11. June 11th, 2010

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Episode Reference  
> Lie To Me: Season 2 Episode 11

June 11, 2010 (plus a week)

Washington D.C.

 

“I’m glad you are taking a small vacation.” Libby grinned, turning so that she could reach her arm across Reid’s chest.

“I’m glad you finally slept at my place.” He chuckled.

“What? We’ve done stuff here.”

“Yes, but last night was the first time you slept in my bed.”

“I know...” She sighed.

“I’m not complaining. I meant you were making progress.”

“I know how you meant it... it’s just... we’ve been together over a year now and I’ve slept at your place once.”

“But you slept.” He smiled.

“I slept very well.” She grinned, squeezing him before climbing out of bed to get dressed.

“Rossi invited everyone over for dinner tonight.” Reid said, pulling up to lean on his side as he watched her.

“I’ve missed Rossi’s cooking.”

“So we’re going?”

“We are.” Libby chuckled.

“Ok. Maybe they’ll tease you instead of the haircut I received over a month ago now.” Reid grumbled.

“I doubt it.” She smirked, climbing back on the bed to kiss him.

“Me too...” He sighed.

“I really like it short.” Libby smiled, running her hands through it.

“I know, that’s why I decided to go a bit shorter this time.”

“You didn’t have to do that, I love you regardless of what you do with your hair.”

“I love you too...” He smiled, it was a new development for them... saying it out loud. “I also have no preference to how my hair looks, barely remembering to brush through it most days, but if you like it short I can manage a haircut.”

“You’re sweet and I have to go”

Libby pushed forward to give him a kiss, and Reid pulled her on top of him as he laid back in bed.

“Spencer!” She couldn’t help her giggle, but she really did have to go.

“Call in.” He smiled, refusing to let her squirm out of his arms.

“I can’t. I’m going with Cal while he guest lectures in a former professor’s graduate seminar.” Not that Helen was much older than Cal.

“He can manage without you.”

“She a former professor of mine from Oxford as well. I’d like to say hello.” Libby wiggled out of his arms and straightened her dress.

“Can I sit in on the lecture?” Reid asked, his interest peaking.

“If you get dressed quickly.”

Reid jumped out of bed and threw on the first thing he found which was surprisingly similar to what he typically wore to work, even grabbing a tie to put on in the car.

“Do we have time to stop for coffee?” He asked, pausing to hold the door for her.

“I wasn’t planning on going to work without it.” Libby chuckled.

 

Coffee in hand they entered the main doors to The Lightman Group. Libby took him past reception and down a few other hallways until reaching her office.

“I can’t believe I’ve never been to here before.” Reid said, taking in the organized space.

The walls were white and the work space was fairly minimally decorated, keeping with the design of the rest of the building. She hadn’t needed a lot of things in her office, so her desk was mostly cleared off with the exception of her computer and picture of her a Spencer she had taken as they walked through The National Mall after the Beshty exhibit. It had been a fairly lighthearted moment and they were both laughing in the photo.

“You’ve never really had a reason to, I usually come to you.” She smiled, taking his hand and dragging him out of her office.

“Where are we going?”

“I want to show you the lab.”

The lab had different feel than the rest of the office. There were monitors in almost every direction you looked and other equipment used during interviews. The space was darker, less sterile and white, though still extremely organized. It had to be for them to effectively do the jobs they were recruited for, given the timeline they were on most days.

“You’re with Lightman today?” Loker asked when she entered, taking a double take at Reid who wasn’t far behind her.

“I am.”

“You’re excited.” Torres noted.

“I haven’t seen Helen since Oxford.” Libby smiled.

“Who’s the arm candy?” Torres asked, nodding toward Reid.

Libby chuckled at the face he made. “This is Dr. Spencer Reid. Spence this is Eli Loker and Ria Torres.”

“Doctor?” Loker lifted his brow.

They had spoken about Spencer but this was the first time she had mentioned a title.

“PhD.” Reid clarified.

“In what?” Loker asked.

“Mathematics, Chemistry, and Engineering.” Reid replied.

“Hmmm...” Loker hummed, glancing between them.

“What?” Reid pushed his bottom lip up, not quite sure how to take Loker’s reaction to him answering the question Loker had asked.

Libby shook her head. “He’s intimidated.”

“Oh, you’re right.” Torres chuckled.

“What?” Loker sputtered.

“You like feeling like one of the smartest people in the room... you’re questioning that now.” Libby smirked.

“Let’s go.”Lightman huffed, sounding both rushed and irritated, poking his head in the lab for only a moment. They were by no means running late.

“Is he always like that?” Reid asked.

“You get used to it.” Torres muttered as Libby and Reid headed towards the exit.

 

Libby smiled from the front of the lecture hall at how studious Reid looked sitting with the rest of the students.

“Does he have to be here?” Lightman grumbled.

“I thought you liked Spence.”

“I do. He just looks so eager to learn something.”

Lightman was close to the end of the lecture when one of Helen’s students questioned Lightman’s logic, prompting Lightman to bring him up for a practical demonstration. Betting him a hundred bucks he could read him. Libby was behind Martin, the student, while he looked at pictures and described them to Lightman while Lightman determined if he was telling the truth. Martin described two pictures to Lightman, both times describing exactly what he saw and both times Lightman said he was lying.

 

“Cal... I didn’t see what you saw, but beating you a couple times doesn’t make him a psychopath.” Libby chuckled when hey returned to the office, Reid in tow.

“Once, he only beat me once. Second time, I let him win because I wanted to see how much he got off on humiliating me.”

Libby bit back a chuckle and gave him a knowing look.

“All right, there’s a lot of people out there who might enjoy doing that, but they all know me. He doesn’t. So yeah I’m going to need his medical files and any psychological profile that might exist.”

“You know that those are confidential.” Reid interjected.

“Yeah. No time for ethics on this one.” Lightman said.

“You’re really crossing that line?” Libby questioned.

“Helen’s already crossed it. One should not shag one’s students, especially not the psychopathic ones.” Lightman stated, leaving the two of them as he continued to his office.

 

Lightman continued to push on his belief that Martin was a psychopath and had probably already killed, convincing Reynolds to go with him as he followed Martin to figure out his routine in order to see how he stalked his prey. Reynolds on the other hand had only agreed to this because there was a missing girl and they had no leads. Libby would have suggested for him to call the BAU if he had anything to actually go on. Besides the whole team was getting a rare break and Reynolds was an FBI agent, she wasn’t going to be the one to pull them from their families. That and she enjoyed have Reid tag along with her for lunch or just swing by her office when he decided to take a break from whatever he was doing that day.

 

Foster was in with a girl at the hospital who was a possible survivor. She matched the look of the girl who had disappeared and had claimed to have escaped from a man trying to kill her. Libby had been at lunch with Reid when Lightman asked her to join them. The three of them, along with Reynolds, watched as Foster talked with Valerie, but she was too shaken up to talk. The fear that flashed across her face when she was shown a picture of Martin was enough to get Libby on board with Lightman’s crusade that Martin had in fact killed.

“I thought you were off chasing UFO’s” Lightman said when Torres entered the room they were in.

“Yeah, well, the office told me where you were.” Torres replied, moving forward when she noticed the picture of Martin. “That’s him, that’s the guy. He just bought me a cup of coffee and said he was going to take me to a concert, but I was...” Torres shook her head looking a little shaken.

“How did you realize that that was him?” Reynolds asked.

“He said he knew Lightman and said that if he was the killer I’d be dead. Is that the girl he attacked?” Torres asked looking toward the room Valerie was in.

“Yeah. You ok?” Reynolds asked.

“She’ll be fine.” Lightman said pausing only to breath before adding, “well, now you’re here, make yourself useful. Go in there and bond with Valerie over being alive.”

Torres took a breath, but did what he asked. Talking with Valerie about how the next girl might not survive. She was effective at getting Valerie to open up.

“He drowned me... over and over. All that water. I died... three times.” Valerie choked out through tears.

“Bastard waterboarded her.” Lightman stated as they watched from a separate room.

“And... when I would come to, his mouth would be on mine. And then he would do it again and again. I begged him to just let me die... but he wouldn’t. Maybe he did...” Valerie continued, tears streaming down her face.

“Excuse me.” Libby whispered, quickly making her way out of the room.

Lightman glanced to Foster and then Reid who had followed after Libby.

 

“Are you ok?” Reid asked once they were sitting on the steps outside the hospital.

Libby brushed the tears away and took a deep breath. “I will be.”

“Is it the begging for death, the waterboarding... or both?” Reid asked. He knew Turner had tortured his victims in various ways, that water had been found in their lungs so they had assumed waterboarding was among his torture techniques, but no one had ever asked her straight out.

“Both...” she sighed, “but it’s more concerning that this is someone new. That he threatened Torres... How many sick fucks are out there that get off on this?”

“Libby...”

“Don’t. I’ll be fine. They’re bringing him in I assume. It’s over.” Libby stood and started walking back to the office.

Reid walked with her. He knew it was a few miles, but didn’t want to leave her alone.

“Libby?” Reid said softly after they had walked in silence for ten minutes or so.

Libby paused in the middle of the sidewalk, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I begged Spence. I barely lasted a week...”

Reid turned her to face him but she couldn’t look up. She didn’t want to see his reaction. They had never asked and she had never told them how bad it had truly been. The pictures and autopsy reports on the bodies they had found of Turner’s victims only told half the story.

“We always assumed he waited until they begged to kill them. That the breaking point was around two weeks. He didn’t. He kept his own timeline. Getting his victims to beg to die was enjoyable to him. Turner told me how long each girl before me held out, while simultaneously torturing me and complimenting my tenacity. The room had no windows, no clocks. He wouldn’t let me sleep, not that I wanted to... but at some point your body does what it needs. One time he woke me by sticking needles into the soles of my feet, another by beating me with a pipe... I only know I lasted close to a week because he told me. ‘ _Well_ _done_ _Libby_. _Day_ _six_ , _that’s_ _impressive_.’ Then he laughed and said I had eight more to go, twisting my arm behind my back until it snapped and I screamed out.” Libby still wasn’t looking at Reid’s face. If there was anytime to not want to know what someone was thinking, this was it.

“Let’s get your car and go to your place.” Reid suggested, taking her hand and moving them down the sidewalk again.

“Can we watch a movie, something mindless, instead of Rossi’s dinner party? I don’t want to think right now.”

“Anything you want.” He replied, pulling her closer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of the dialogue comes straight from the Lie To Me episode... this is one of my favorite episodes from this show and it fits well with my story and it felt strange to rewrite something that I like how it was originally written. I don’t typically like to do that (though I have a few times) but this episode just happened to fit really well.


	12. November 14th, 2013

November 14, 2013

New York City

 

“Guilty verdict yesterday, paperwork completed. Early dinner... late lunch?” Rafael texted as Libby’s profiling class took their seats.

“My last class gets out at two twenty. I’m free after that.” She smiled as she replied.

“Give me the building and room number and I’ll meet you after your class.”

Libby chuckled to herself and sent the information he had asked for, then quickly settled her students so she could start.

This class was small in comparison to her Behavioral Analysis classes. That one took place in a large lecture hall with roughly a hundred and fifty undergrads. Both profiling courses she taught consisted of twenty or so graduate students and the lively discussions made it her favorite class to teach.

 

She was about to close lecture and assign a project when she saw Rafael’s head peek into the room for the third time in less that five minutes. “Rafael, you can come in while you wait.” She said, fighting hard not to chuckle as he entered the room, her students eyes landing on him.

Libby handed a stack of files to her TA and addressed her students once more. “Tim is handing you a case file. Once you receive yours I want you to move to the front of the room.”

Rafael stood comfortably off to the side of the room, rather enjoying watching her teach. It was why he had shown up early, his original plan had been to listen from the hall, this was much better though. Libby waited for all files to be handed out and her students to be standing, giving Rafael a quick smile in the process.

“Now, if you will find a seat with those who have the same color file folders as you.” She had found this was the easiest way to group students. Once they were sitting in groups she continued with her instructions.

“I need each group to designate one person to email me the names of each team member along with the color of your file, as each team will be working a different case. Either Tim or I will be emailing new information to you at random intervals as you work to create your profile, the last of which you will receive by December first. Each of you needs to write up a report individually, but you will present your profile as a group on December fifth. The final for this class is December sixteenth, so I will not be allotting lecture time to work on this project. I expect you to work as a team, discussion is important in an effective profile. Profiling is a process. Your initial assumptions will change as you get new pieces of the puzzle. I urge you to meet with your team shortly after receiving new information so that you can discuss what it means to your case. My expectations are outlined in the syllabus, so please reference that before emailing me or Tim questions. I’ll be around for office hours tomorrow. Once your group is set, you’re free to go.”

Libby started gathering her things, talking with a few students as she did. Rafael joined her at the front of the classroom once the majority of the class had dispersed.

“Tim, this my boyfriend Rafael Barba. Rafael, this is my TA Tim Young.” Libby said introducing them.

“It’s nice to meet you.” Rafael said, shaking his hand.

“You too.” Tim replied.

“Tim, send the first round of new information Saturday at seven.” Libby stated.

“Why seven?” Tim chuckled.

“Just to see how many of them check their email on a Saturday evening.” She smiled.

“I always hated group projects.” Rafael stated once Tim had left.

“Me too, but that was as an undergrad. Every student in this class is working towards a masters in psychology. You can’t tell me that group projects as a law student weren’t different than group projects in some random undergrad class that had nothing to do with your major.”

“I still prefer to work solo.” He smirked.

“Really, so these detectives that call you at all hours, dragging you out of my bed... they annoy you to work with.” Libby smiled, knowing that he worked well with the people she had only heard about at this point.

“Yes, especially when they drag me out of your bed” he smirked and moved closer to her, his hand finding her waist, “but I get your point. We work with people in life, they may as well get used to it.”

“Exactly.” She grinned, taking his hand and dragging him behind her to her office to drop things off.

 

They had just sat down at the restaurant when her phone rang. “Sorry.” Libby muttered, pulling it from her purse, sighing as she glanced at the name on the screen.

“I have to take this,” She apologized, answering her phone, “Hey.”

Rafael furrowed his brow when she almost immediately giggled.

“Can we catch up later, Spence?” She asked, looking apologetically at Rafael, “Great, yes. That should work. Talk to you then.”

“That was your ex?” Rafael questioned, not exactly looking pleased.

“I wouldn’t have taken the call if he didn’t work with the BAU. I don’t ignore their calls.” Libby explained.

“But you plan to talk with him later?”

“We’re on good terms. We aren’t as close as we once were, but we make a point to check in every six months or so.”

“You’re friends?” Rafael more accused than asked.

“Not like we were before we dated, but yes.” Libby replied. She could tell this bit of information was bothering Rafael, but couldn’t figure out how to ease his mind.

“You didn’t mention you were on a date.” He huffed.

“Because I wanted to get off the phone to actually enjoy our date. I will tell him all about you when we talk this weekend.”

“What will you tell him?” Rafael smirked, deciding to lighten the mood his jealousy had dampened.

Libby smiled and shook her head. “That I met this rather intense man who got butt hurt when he called in the middle of our date.”

“Thanks.” Rafael chuckled.

“I’ll tell him that I met someone and that I like him a lot.”

“You like me?” Rafael teased.

Libby rolled her eyes and shook her head again, giving him a slightly amused smile. “You know I like you.”

“Can you tell how much I like you?”

“What do you mean?” Libby asked furrowing her brow.

“I mean... since you can read people... can you tell to what degree I like you?” Rafael rephrased.

Libby thought for a moment before responding. She could tell that he liked her, the subtle smiles and softening of the eyes where always a give away. Knowing who was interested in her for more than just her looks had always been easy. To what extent they felt for her was something different though. She could usually tell if someone liked her more than she liked them, this had saved her from hurting a few people in her past and she was thankful for it. Mostly though, she could only make an inference based on how the relationship evolved, but that was the best she could do.

“No. I can guess, probably fairly accurately, but I’d prefer to wait until you decide to tell me how you feel... of course that doesn’t necessarily mean with your words.” She smiled.

“But...” He trailed off not exactly knowing how to ask what he wanted to ask.

“Rafael I like you. I want to be with you and no one else.”

“Even if your ex was an option?”

“We didn’t work out for a reason.” Libby assured him.

Rafael inhaled deeply and sat up taller, almost as though he just realized how insecure he just sounded. “Ok.” He stated, moving on from the subject.

“You’re cute when you’re jealous.” Libby smirked.

Rafael rolled his eyes and lifted her menu in front of her to look at, an action that made her chuckle.

 

“Are you coming in?” Libby asked, between kisses outside her door.

“I’ll have to get up early in the morning.” Rafael replied, trailing kisses down her neck.

Libby smiled and let them into her apartment. “Then I’ll get my run in.” She smirked shutting the door behind them.

“Why don’t you go ahead and do your nightly check.” Rafael suggested, his hands running up her sides. Libby gave him a curious look so he continued. “I was thinking we could go to bed now.”

She chuckled and kissed him again before completing her routine of checking the doors and windows as Rafael followed her to the bedroom. It wasn’t long until they were tangled limbs and moans on her bed, their clothing in tiny piles on her bedroom floor.

“I really should keep a few suits here.” Rafael panted when she curled into his side.

“It would be the logical thing to do.” Libby smiled.

“I do sleep here more nights than I do my own place it seems.”

“I’ll clear you out a drawer and some space in the closet.”

“Is it too soon to do that?” Rafael questioned.

“Why? You’re going to end up here anyway and I like you here, so we may as well make it convenient for you.” Libby smiled.

“Just checking.” He smirked, pulling her tighter.

 

 


	13. December 20th, 2010

December 20, 2010 (plus a day)

Washington D.C.

 

_It was dark, it was always dark and she couldn’t see much, despite the fact that her eyes had adjusted. The objects around her were shapes and shadows. She knew the dark space across the room was a table, that a chair sat not too far from her... it’s where he’d sit and watch her and she wondered if he was there now. Libby quieted herself, controlling her breathing so that it was slow and silent, and listen for anyone else in the room. “Did they teach you that in the academy?” His voice was laced with amusement, she heard shuffling and then the furnace door open. “No, no... please don’t...” She begged, the light from the fire giving her a glimpse at the rod he had pulled out. “I’m going to let you in on a little secret...” Turner whispered, pulling her hair off her back and over her shoulder, gripping it tightly so she’d look up at him, “I like it when you beg... but mostly, I enjoy your screams.” Libby’s eyes widened and Turner’s dilated as he pressed the searing rod across her shoulder blades, smiling when she screamed out in agony, her wrist pulling against the shackles that held her arms above her head as she tried in vain to pull away._

“Libby. Libby, wake up.” Reid spoke softly, trying to wake her without startling her too much.

Libby blinked a few times, her bedroom and Spencer coming into focus, along with the realization that her clothing was damp from where she had sweated.

“I need to change...” She muttered when Reid moved to hold her.

The nightmares had stopped. She hadn’t had one since the night Spencer first slept at her apartment after the South Padre case. She had thought she was done with them, but that was until Lightman had gone after Helen’s student. They came back after that, and now, almostsix months later they were as bad as they had ever been. Sometimes Turner looked like himself, other times Martin’s face stared back at her, and sometimes it was the random guy she remembered from the coffee shop or walking past on the street.

Libby climbed back in bed after changing clothes, cuddling closer to Spencer.

“Maybe you should talk to someone.” Reid suggested.

“I don’t want to talk to someone.” Libby grumbled.

“Libby...”

“How is talking to a therapist going to stop my brain from going to dark places while I sleep? We both have degrees in psychology. If I wanted to talk, I’d talk to you.”

“But you don’t, you don’t talk to anyone. Maybe a stranger would be easier.”

“Are you going to talk to a doctor about your migraines?” Libby huffed, knowing full well that he was purposely hidding them. Not that he could really hide the pained expression on his face from her, though it had taken her a while to determine what the cause was.

“I will if you will.” He countered.

“I’ll think about it.” Libby grumbled, resting her head on his chest.

Spencer’s breathing leveled back out within minutes, but Libby laid there staring at the wall until her alarm went off. Too afraid of what she’d see to fall back asleep.

 

Libby had opted for an Americano that morning, needing the extra caffeine.

“You look tired.” Lightman noted when she joined them in the lab.

Libby lifted her coffee higher and moved to sit next to Loker.

“Are you not sleeping?” Lightman pushed.

“Not last night.” She smirked, giving off the impression that her late night was more enjoyable than it actually was, though the beginning to the night had been rather enjoyable. That was the only reason she could pull off the lie with Lightman, because it wasn’t a lie... just not the whole truth. She had no intention of telling him she was having nightmares, he’d limit the cases she could work and that wasn’t something she wanted.

Lightman made a face and moved on with introducing the new cases they had picked up. “Right. Torres your with Foster, more governmental appointees to question. Libby and Loker, there’s a fun little possible adulterer to track down.”

“More PI garbage?” Libby huffed, “What are you doing?”

“He’s paying good money to avoid a large divorce settlement.” Lightman jested.

“That didn’t answer my question.”

“I’m going to prison to determine if an inmate should be eligible for parole.”

“That sounds more interesting.” Libby smiled, perking up slightly. “Loker can handle the cheating wife.”

“You still need to determine whether she’s cheating and I don’t need help.” Lightman stated.

“What prison?” Libby asked, curiously.

“Virginia Super Max.” Lightman replied, looking to get a read off her.

“In that case, have fun.” Libby huffed.

“You have something against that particular prison?” Torres asked.

“It’s where Edward Turner is incarcerated.” Loker answered.

“Who’s that?” Torres questioned.

“The man who tried to kill me.” Libby sighed as she stood. “I’m going to get a few things done in my office. I’ll meet you back here in thirty minutes.” She added turning to Loker.

“Sure.” He nodded, looking up at her from his seat.

Libby assumed they fill Torres in on the basic gist of what happened when she left. Torres hadn’t been hired yet when Libby started at The Lightman Group, which had only been a month after she had been released from the hospital. Her arm was still in a cast, she had walked with a limp, and a lot of her bruising hadn’t completely healed yet. Lightman had taken care of informing the others so she didn’t have to.

 

Libby sat at her desk and stared at her computer for a moment. She didn’t have anything that she needed to do in her office, she had just wanted to leave the room. To breath without the looks, without her mind going to the place it did every night it seemed now. _“Maybe you should talk to someone.”_ Reid’s voice filled her head. She could talk to Foster... but she didn’t want to. She didn’t want to talk to anyone about the things Turner had done to her... but talking couldn’t be as bad as reliving it every night. Libby exhaled and began researching psychiatrists in the area.

 

“What’s eating you?” Loker asked when Libby grumbled inaudible at the screen for the umpteenth time.

The wife of their current client was all smiles in the video they had taken without her knowledge as Libby chatted with her seemingly by chance.

“Our client is a bastard.” Libby huffed.

Loker chuckled. “Yes, but a well paying bastard.”

“She’s not cheating on him, in fact I’d go as far as to say she doesn’t even know he’s planning on divorcing her. Look how happy she is when talks about him.”

“Maybe he’s the one cheating, hoping that she is too in order to make the divorce settlement smaller. We could ask him.” Loker suggested.

Libby knew he was trying to cheer her up, give her something to take the wife so she wasn’t blindsided. And while she was annoyed by their client, she was more anxious about the appointment she had booked rather hastily that morning with a therapist.

“Let’s just give him the bad news that his wife is faithful and let him sort out his own infidelity. That’s not the kind of news I what to give someone.” Libby huffed, picking up the phone to call their client.

 

_She woke with a start. Her body ached, the burn across her shoulder blades tender, her arm throbbed... she knew it was broken. It hung loosely at her side, the other still shackled above her head. There were stitches across her abdomen, just above her left hipbone, from where he had sewn up a cut that went too deep. “This may be more fun than the cut itself.” Turner had mused when she grimaced with each stitch he made. Libby had been lowered at some point so that she sat on the floor, falling asleep with her head hanging next to her extended arm. This was the first time she hadn’t been woken, that he had let her sleep. “Good, you’re up.” Turner’s voice grumbled from somewhere in the dark. Sleep deprivation and dehydration putting her in a constant state of confusion, her mind never seeming to clear. She was too tired and weak to determine his exact location. Suddenly, she was yanked to her feet, shrieking in pain as she felt her shoulder dislocate. Finding her footing, she took her weight off the shoulder as best she could to minimize the discomfort. “What day is it?” She asked, her voice hoarse, almost unrecognizable. “Not the day you want.” He replied. Libby couldn’t see his face, merely make out his blurry shape, but there was a bit of humor in his voice and it turned her stomach. They both remained quiet, Libby listening for what would come next, Turner watching her. There was a rustling of air, then the impact against her ribs. A baseball bat maybe... trying to determine what he was hitting her with helped distract from the pain... at least until she felt her rib cracked._

 

Libby jerked awake. She was alone in her bed, shivering and drenched from sweat. “Fantastic...” she muttered to herself as she glanced at the clock. Four thirty. Her alarm would go off in thirty minutes so she climbed out of bed and stripped it, tossing the sheets in the washer, planning to run it after work, and hopped in the shower. Normally she arrived at the office at nine, so a five am wake up wasn’t necessary. Today however, she had her appointment to speak with a therapist, scheduling it for eight to hopefully not be more than thirty minutes late for work.

 

The waiting area was quiet and empty with the exception of the receptionist who was reading a book as she sat behind the desk.

“I have an appointment at eight. Last name Bradley.” Libby said as she approached.

“Are you a new patient?” The girl asked.

“Yes.”

“I need you to fill these forms out.” The girl stated, handing her a clip board and a pen.

Libby took the paperwork and sat down, filling out the standard medical form, rolling her eyes that they still asked for a social. That would be left blank as it wasn’t needed, all they needed was her insurance information. She flipped to a packet of questions and scanned them, deciding only to answer the ones necessary to her visit. She filled out the top portion with her name and date, skipping the question about who had referred her. No one had, no one even knew she was here... not even Spencer, she hadn’t wanted to get his hopes up.

    Please briefly describe the problems for which you are seeking help at this time.

Nine lines were provided for her to write and explanation but she simply jotted down the word nightmares.

    Approximately when did the problem(s) begin?

Not knowing how to answer since they had started twice, she decided instead to leave the question blank. She’d explain if she decided to continue to see this therapist.

    Any known stress cause or contribute to the problem(s)? No__ Yes__ If Yes, please describe stress:

Libby almost laughed out loud. The two lines provided were not nearly enough to explain, even if she had wanted to write it down.

    Have you ever received outpatient mental health treatment?

No.

    Have you ever received inpatient mental health treatment?

No.

    If you have ever taken psychiatric medications, please list them below:

Not Applicable

    Have you ever threatened or attempted suicide?

No.

The next section was about substance abuse, which she answered honestly. She had never smoked or done any drug of any kind. Occasionally she drank, but rarely became intoxicated even before her abduction. Not that she wrote that. She simply filled out the table provided on frequency and amount of use. She skipped the family history section, feeling that none of it was relevant to why she was there and quite frankly none of their business. Though she doubted she’d take any medication if prescribed, she opted to answer the medical history questions, at least the ones pertaining to drug overlap and allergies. The social section... where she lived, who she lived with, was left blank as well. No one needed to know she was an unmarried woman living alone. Perhaps her job had made her overly paranoid...

    Please list all previous & current full-time employment:

That one was easy as she had only had the two, aside from part time work while in school. Both seemed relevant to her issue so she listed them.

    If currently employed, do you find satisfaction in your work?

Yes.

She left the school history blank, chuckled and wrote no for the legal problems question, and didn’t bother answering the religious section either. They could address the unanswered sections during session if she chose to continue with therapy. She would assess the doctor and then decide.

“Bradley?” An woman slightly older than her called from a door across the waiting room.

Libby stood and joined her, following her to a large office with a small sitting area to one side.

“I’m Dr. Nelson.” The woman said, gesturing to a chair.

“I prefer Libby to Lauren.”

“Ok. So, you’re having nightmares?” Dr. Nelson asked.

“Most nights.” Libby replied.

“Do you want to tell me about them?”

“Would it be better to talk about the nightmares or the incident the nightmares are about?” Libby asked.

“Which do you think?”

Libby took a deep breath and explained the basics of what had happened. That she had been abducted and tortured, that the nightmares had gone away for a while, but had come back. Dr. Nelson made her feel comfortable, but not so much that she had told her more than anyone else knew. Libby knew this would be a process, the idea of opening up to someone about the horrors she had endured was unsettling, but Spencer was right... a stranger would be easier.


	14. November 20th, 2013

November 20, 2013

New York City

 

Libby was in the middle of class when she heard her phone buzz as it sat on the podium. Ignoring it, she continued with her lecture, whatever it was it could wait. If it was an emergency it would...

Vzzzzzt... vzzzzzt... vzzzzzt... Her phone vibrated against the papers it sat atop on the podium as it rang for a second time. Libby paused her lecture this time and glanced at it, a familiar name flashing across the screen.

“Bradley.” She answered, giving her class a gesture indicating she needed a minute.

“Libby, it’s Hotchner. We need your assistance on a case we’re working in New York.”

“In the city?” She questioned.

“Manhattan, yes. Will you meet with the detectives on the case? Get a head start. We are leaving now, should arrive at eleven.” Hotchner stated, the question in the middle coming off more as an order.

“Text me the precinct.”

Libby ended the call and glance at her students. “Tim will finish lecture today, possibly the rest of the week.” Tim, her TA moved to take her lecture notes from her as she gathered her things. “I’ll e-mail you tomorrow’s if necessary.” She whispered as she handed him that days lecture notes before turning to address the class again. “Tim knows this class and my expectations and can answer most of your questions, but if you need to you can e-mail me, I’ll respond as quickly as I can.”

 

“Can I help you?” A man who seemed vaguely familiar asked when she entered the bullpen.

“I’m looking for Captain Cragen.” Libby stated.

“He’s in his office with our ADA. I’m Detective Amaro, or Nick.” He said guiding her to Cragen’s office.

She was about to introduce herself to him when Cragen’s door opened and Rafael exited with a tall brunette and the man she assumed was Captain Cragen. The reason Nick looked familiar to her becoming clear as she remember the night she met Rafael at the bar.

“Libby.” Rafael blurted when he saw her.

“You two know each other?” Nick asked.

“We do.” Libby smiled, the look on Rafael’s face telling her he didn’t like his personal life public.

“You must be Professor Bradley.” Cragen spoke, preventing Nick from asking how they knew each other.

“Libby, please.” She said, only her students called her Professor Bradley.

“I’ll introduce you.” Cragen said, guiding them to the conference room where the others were going over the case.

“The is Profes...”

“Libby.” She corrected.

“Libby... she will be consulting with the FBI on this case. This is Detective Tutuola, Rollins, Amaro, and Benson... you seemed to know ADA Barba.” Cragen continued.

“You do?” Rollins asked.

“I do.” Libby said, purposely not elaborating.

“Let’s get her up to speed on what we have.” Cragen directed.

“Actually, I process things better visually,” Libby glanced at her watch, “The BAU should be here within the hour, if I can, I’d prefer to use this time to familiarize myself with the case by looking through the evidence myself.”

“Everything we have is here.” Nick said, gesturing to the board with the victim’s picture and brief synopsis, and a table with multiple files spread out on it.

Libby silently walked to the board taking it in as the others sat back down at the table. She tuned them out as they started discussing the case again, instead focusing on the victim’s pictures, the DMV photo and the crime scene photos, specifically the expression frozen on her faces in death.

Rafael watched her as he listened to the others. This was a case making headlines and the DA had asked him to be involved so they could stay on top of the situation, responding to the media as needed. He smiled when she sat in the chair next to him and pulled a file at random off the center of the table.

“I guess we’re working together.” She whispered.

“Looks that way.” He replied.

Libby turned her attention to the file, working her way through it before moving on to the next. She had made her way through the majority of them by the time the BAU arrived.

 

Four men and two women entered the conference room, their presence alone seeming to shift the authority to them. Rafael glanced at the men, assuming that one of them was the ex that had come up a few times.

“How are you doing, Libby?” Rossi smiled, patting her shoulder as he passed, almost fatherly, so Rafael ruled him out.

“Good Rossi. How’s the BAU?” She smiled.

“Oh you know, disturbing yet satisfying.” He said, returning her smile.

“Agent Hotchner, I presume?” Cragen asked, addressing the darker haired man with frown lines seemingly etched into his face.

“Yes. This is SSA Morgan, Jareau, Rossi, Reid, and Blake.” Hotchner stated, pointing to the people around the room.

Rafael only knew her ex’s first name but assumed Hotchner was their unit chief, determining her ex was either Morgan or Reid, neither of which made him feel more comfortable.

“These are Detective’s Olivia Benson, Nick Amaro, Amanda Rollins, Odafin Tutuola, and our ADA Rafael Barba.” Cragen said, introducing them.

“You cut your hair.” Libby said as Reid took the seat across from her.

“It was time for a haircut.” He said dismissively.

“I always liked it shorter.” She smiled and Rafael narrowed his suspicion to the very attractive, albeit slender man sitting across from him.

“I use a small amount of product now.” He stated, his eyes scanning one of the files.

“Are you a former agent?” Benson asked.

“A lifetime ago...” Libby stated, glancing at Rafael who was staring at Reid. Subtly she ran her hand along his thigh to get his attention.

Rafael turned to her as he exhaled a little puff of air, and she had to stifle a chuckle when she realized he was jealous.

 

“What have your detectives found?” Hotchner asked. They had been given the files ahead of time but he liked to hear the local police take on the crimes they investigated. Fresh eyes and perspectives usually aided in solving cases.

“We have a woman who looks eerily similar to our victim and was reported missing November seventeenth when she didn’t show up for work.” Benson said.

“That’s not a long of a cooling off period. The body was found on the sixteenth?” Hotchner questioned.

“Yes. We called you when we expanded our search and found similar crimes in Tampa.” Benson added.

“We’ve looked at every possible witness or camera around both girls home and work but we have nothing. They just vanish.” Nick stated.

“He has to stalks his victims, probably for weeks before he decides to abduct the first one.” Benson said.

“He’s methodical.” JJ stated.

“He’s also brutal.” Rollins added as she stood, moving to the crime scene photo’s pinned on the board. “Broken ribs, dislocated arm, bruising on ninety percent of her body, multiple lacerations... it wasn’t enough just to rape her.”

“No it wasn’t.” Libby sighed, “Do you have photos of the victims in Tampa?”

Rollins nodded and pulled them from a folder, pinning them on the board as well.

Libby stared at them. She didn’t need to move closer to see the desperation in their eyes.

“What?” Hotchner clipped impatiently.

“Look at their faces,” Libby exhaled, “each one is pleading for death... to be put out of their misery. That’s intentional. He took no mercy on them, relentless from the moment he took them until they begged him to end their suffering... which they did, more than once.”

“That’s seems familiar.” Morgan said, thinking out loud.

“It’s Edward Turner.” Libby breathed.

“It’s similar, but Turner didn’t rape his victims. He got off on the torture.” Hotchner argued.

“Look at the wounds. How he posed the the victims... their faces. It’s too similar.” Libby almost whispered.

“Where’s this Turner guy?” Fin asked.

“Prison.” Libby stated calmly, all emotion vacant from her voice as she stared at thepictures.

“You think it’s a copycat?” Reid questioned, concerned displayed across his face. He never could hide his emotions and this made Libby smile. Not much had changed after all.

“I think it’s something to consider.” Libby sighed.

“How long has Edward Turner been incarcerated?” Alex Blake asked. She was the only one of the group Libby didn’t have a history with, but members of the BAU changed. Prentiss had taken a position with Interpol, so Libby had assumed someone would replace her.

“Almost five years ago... We arrested Turner on December 29, 2008.” Reid said.

“Why would a copycat show up now? Wouldn’t it make more sense to show up on the five year mark?” Blake questioned.

“He didn’t,” JJ said as she scrolled through information on her tablet Garcia had sent over, “He’s done this in two other cities besides New York and Tampa, different cities than Turner, but four cities just the same. He started a year ago.”

“In December?” Reid asked, his head turning toward the board with the victims faces staring back at them.

JJ scrolled through the file. “Looks like it.”

“That’s when Turner started. His first victim was found in Seattle on December fifteenth but the coroner determined she couldn’t have been dead for more than two days and since he kept them for close to two weeks we had determined that he abducted her somewhere around the first of December. ” Reid said.

“I hate to point out how much these victims resemble Turner’s victims.” Morgan stated his eyes softening as they made contact with Libby’s.

“You mean how much they look like me...” Libby muttered. There was no denying it, the women on the board definitely resembled her. All of them having large blue eyes, pronounced cheekbones, fuller than thin lips, and dark brown hair with reddish highlights.

“We can work this case without you.” Hotchner offered, speaking directly to Libby.

“I’m a possible target whether I work the case or not. I’d rather know what’s happening.” Libby sighed.

“Why are you a possible target?” Rafael asked, the tone with which he asked her, soft and almost private, garnering the attention of both the detectives and the FBI agents.

“Because I was intended to be Turners last victim.” Libby shrugged.

“He went after an FBI agent?” Fin questioned.

“We were getting close and he knew it, taking Libby was his end game.” Morgan replied.

“Libby could be an explanation for why he chose New York.” JJ added.

“He wants to finish what turner started... copycats seem to always want to finish someone else’s work.” Rossi huffed.

“I’ll post agents outside your building.” Hotchner stated.

Libby nodded but didn’t say anything. He wasn’t giving her an option but honestly after last time she wouldn’t turn them down anyway.

 

“There is still a chance this is just a coincidence. Depending on what you consider brunette, it accounts for seventy five to ninety percent of the worlds population. So the probability of our unsub fixating on brunettes is higher than any other hair color even if you only account for caucasian females which make up thirty seven percent of serial killer’s victims.” Reid stated.

“I figured that percentage would be higher.” Fin interjected.

“It’s actually a misnomer that the majority of serial killers target women. White males make up the second largest victim group at thirty percent, followed by black men and women both accounting for twelve percent each, though women still slightly higher. Hispanic males at four percent lead Hispanic women by one point, and Asians seem to be the least likely victims at less that one percent each.” Reid continued.

“What happens to your statistics if you account for the auburn highlights?” Libby sighed.

“Naturally, like yours?” Reid questioned.

“Does it matter?” Nick asked.

“Naturally red hair occurs in less than two percent of the worlds population, so if he’s targeting naturally auburn haired individuals that would dramatically change the math but there’s no way to calculate if the variable of hair dye is factored in. Well there is but I haven’t read hair dye statistics and I feel our time is better spent elsewhere.” Reid replied.

“What are you, some kind of genius?” Nick asked.

“Yes.” Libby replied simply.

“He is?” Rafael questioned and again it was really only meant for her but the surprise in his voice was noticeable.

“I’m attracted to intelligence.” Libby smiled.

“Yes, because he’s so unattractive.” Rafael muttered.

“This is your boyfriend?” Reid asked, glancing up at them.

“Yes.” Libby replied.

“A prosecutor?” Rossi teased.

“He’s already survived Cal’s scrutiny.” Libby chuckled, passing the file she had to Reid.

“Lightman approves?” Morgan smiled.

“He does.” Libby nodded.

“I never could tell if he liked me or not.” Reid stated as he read through the file.

“He liked you. He just thought you needed to learn how to lie better. You didn’t provide him much of a challenge.” She chuckled.

“And Barba does?” Liv questioned, not exactly sure why someone would want someone else to lie to them.

“Rafael has never lied to him, he’s just more challenging to read than Spence.” Libby replied.

“Wait Cal Lightman?” Rollins asked.

“Yes.” Reid answered.

“The world’s leading deception expert?” Rollins questioned.

“You’re sitting in the same room as one of his protégés.” Hotchner stated flatly, not pleased with the direction of the conversation.

“We have nine days.” Libby stated, appeasing Hotchner and moving the conversation back on track.

“Or until she caves and begs him to kill her.” Morgan sighs.

“No, we have nine days.” Libby reiterated, “If this is a copycat, he’ll kill her on the twenty ninth and take his new victim December first.”

“Something you want to share?” Rossi questioned, lifting a brow.

Libby looked at him, shrugged and pushed her bottom lip up. “They can beg all they want. He won’t kill them until day fourteen.”

“Jesus...” Rossi exhaled.

“What?” Blake questioned.

“We finally found where he was keeping Libby on December twenty ninth.” JJ replied, sad eyes staring back at Libby as though she finally understood why Libby had left.

“What other information do you have that might be useful?” Hotchner asked, pulling the conversation yet again back to the case.

“Turner was methodical. One city, two months, four girls... He took a month off from killing to find his next location to hold the women, and pick the women themselves. Nothing was left to chance. I wasn’t his intended last victim. He took me because he knew we were getting close and thought it would be fun... a challenge.” Libby stated.

“So you’re not the only possible target?” Rollins interjected.

Libby’s eyes widened. “No, I’m not. He kept going on about how he liked to save his favorite for last and I was taking that away from him. He never mentioned a name though.”

“Garcia. I need you to cross reference women who match our victimology and moved from Phoenix Arizona to New York in the last five years.” Morgan said, putting his phone on speaker.

“I’m on it, my perfectly sculpted man candy.” The response garnering curious looks from the detectives and Rafael.

“Garcia wait...” Libby called as she scanned the information she had sent via email again.

“Oh my... that’s not... is that my beautiful Libby Lou?” Garcia stammered.

Libby smiled. “In the flesh.”

“And now I want to join you all in New York, any chance you and boy wonder can...”

“Garcia.” Hotchner interjected.

“Yes sir. What else?” Garcia faltered slightly at Hotchner’s tone.

“Narrow it to women who moved to New York over a year ago. There’s not a break between the last city and New York, so my bet is this unsub researched New York long before the killings started.” Libby said.

 

“You definitely think this is a copycat?” Nick asked once they were off the phone with Garcia.

Libby glanced at the photos. “It’s too similar not to be...”

“The only difference is the rape?” Liv questioned.

“Turner is impotent.” Reid stated still emerged in a file.

“Our current unsub clearly isn’t. Rossi, you and I will go to the location the first victim was found. Morgan take Reid, and check the first victim’s and our missing girl’s apartments. Libby you know Turner better than any of us, I want you and JJ to have Garcia send over everything we have on his victims to try and determine why he chose them. Compare his victims to our current unsubs victims, see if we can find a connection.” Hotchner commanded.

 

Fin drove Rossi and Hotchner, while Nick and Rollins took Morgan and Reid to the victims apartments. Leaving JJ, Libby, Rafael, and Liv to sort through the information when Garcia finally got it to them.

“Garcia said give her an hour to get the file together and sent over.” JJ said hanging up the phone.

“Do we need to print them out?” Liv asked.

“Spence would appreciate a hard copy.” Libby chuckled.

JJ smiled. “Yes he would. The rest of us are fine with digital.”

“Can I barrow you for a minute?” Rafael asked, giving Libby a look indicating that they needed to talk.

Libby nodded following him to a room that was used to interview victims. “Are you ok?” She asked once he shut the door.

“Me? That’s what I was going to ask you.”

“I’m not sure it’s hit me yet.” Libby replied honestly. She hadn’t really let any of what was happening register.

“That’s why you left the FBI?” He almost whispered the question.

“It is.”

“Ok...” He exhaled, mentally scanning her body, the scars, the pictures of the victims plastered on the board.

Libby watched him, not wanting him to panic now that he had details to go with her scars. “What do you want to know?”

“It’s been five years?

“On December twenty ninth.”

He nodded as he looked down, tonguing his lip as he thought. “Do you talk to someone?” His eyes met hers again.

“I do. Not the same therapist I started with, but one she recommended when I moved to New York.”

“Were you going to tell me?” Rafael croaked. He didn’t elaborate but she knew what he meant. They had only briefly talked about her scars and why she left the BAU, him having told her she could let him in when she was ready.

Libby bit her lip and shook her head, exhaling as she glanced toward the ceiling. “Not like this. I would have told you. Maybe not for a few more months and probably not with the visual aides, but I would have told you.”

She watched him for a moment, reading him... waiting to see how he would react.

“You told your ex about me?” He asked, the corner of his mouth twitching upward slightly.

“I told you I would.” Libby smiled, moving closer to him, his arms opening to embrace her. Neither of them concerned with the observation window between the room they were in and the bullpen.

 

JJ and Liv both looked up when they reentered the conference room.

“Everything alright?” JJ asked.

Libby smiled and nodded, Rafael and her returning to their seats.

“How long have you been dating?” Liv questioned.

“Since the beginning of October.” Rafael answered.

Liv chuckled softly to herself while flipping through a file.

“What?” Rafael challenged.

“You’ve just seemed a little less huffy lately.” Liv replied, biting back a smile.

JJ and Libby both glanced at each other, smiles tugging at both their mouths as they listened.

“I’m not huffy.” He stated rather huffily.

“My mistake.” Liv teased.

This time JJ and Libby chuckled.

“I’m sorry.” Libby smiled at Rafael when he looked at her. “If it makes you feel better you’re really cute when you’re huffy.”

“We don’t all share that opinion,” Liv smiled, “sometimes you’re just annoying.”

“Has your coquettish computer virtuoso sent anything yet?” Rafael grumbled, hoping to take the conversation off him.

“I do think of what I do as an art form.” Garcia voice piped in, causing Rafael to turn slightly pink.

“I guess I should have mentioned Garcia put me on hold while you two were out of the room.” JJ smirked.

“Though I’m sad you can’t work things out with boy wonder, I will say that is one gorgeous man.” Garcia stated.

“Penelope,” Libby scolded, “please refrain from using your hacking skills to find images of my boyfriend.”

“Hacking? He’s a public figure. Finding a picture took absolutely no effort. The high school drama photos... those I’m took some digging.” Garcia countered.

Rafael’s face turned a slightly darker shade of pink.

“Garcia, the files?” JJ interjected.

“Sending them now.” Garcia replied

“Hey Garcia, text me the photo’s.” Libby chuckled.

“Please don’t.” Rafael pleaded.

“Too late.” Garcia said, ending the call.

“Drama?” Liv questioned, lifting a brow.

“I needed an elective.” He muttered, though the grin on Libby’s face as she looked at her phone was worth any embarrassment... especially with how personal the case they were working was for her. He was however relieved when she didn’t offer to show them to anyone and no one else asked to see them.

 


	15. May 24th, 2011

May 24, 2011 (plus a week)

Washington D.C.

 

Libby had spoken in great detail about Turner, told Dr. Nelson things she barely allowed herself to think, and yet the nightmares still persisted.

“I thought talking this through was supposed to help?” Libby grumbled while sitting in her weekly session.

Dr. Nelson looked at her, tapping her finger against her lip. “It’s a technique, but nothing is guaranteed. Have you thought about other stressors that might be a contributing cause?”

“Like what?” Libby snapped, not liking where this was going.

Dr. Nelson exhaled and pursed her lips, but didn’t say anything.

“You mean my work... Spence’s work.”

“You might talk with Lightman, restrict the cases you work... at least for the time being.” Dr. Nelson suggested.

“I can do that.” Libby conceded.

“How often does Spencer talk about the cases they work with you?”

“He never brings up cases anymore. I have no idea where they’ve even traveled to half the time.”

“But when he travels...”

Libby rolled her eyes and sighed. “I still know he’s working a case, the details are moot.”

“Could he travel less... at least temporarily?” Dr. Nelson asked.

“Doubtful, he has worked remotely in the past, but the BAU is more of a hands on unit.”

Dr. Nelson sat quietly while she thought, Libby watching her, her leg shaking nervously as her mind tried to determine what Dr. Nelson was thinking. “I’m not breaking up with him. I’d rather have the nightmares.” Libby blurted.

“I wasn’t going to suggest that.”

“Then what? What else can I do?” Libby sounded desperate. She looked it too. Dark circles where persistent under her eyes now and she had dropped at least fifteen pounds... fifteen pounds she didn’t exactly have to lose. The constant disruption to her sleep was taking a toll on not only her appearance, but her mind as well.

“You’ve stopped all caffeine after noon?”

“I have.” Libby muttered. She missed her afternoon coffee.

“Scent has a powerful effect on our mind. Why don’t you try finding something that makes you think of a happier time and fill your room with that before you go to sleep.”

“In addition to everything else?”

“Yes. I still want you to think of something positive from your day, don’t dwell on the nightmare when you do have one, exercise, and limit your caffeine.” Dr Nelson stated.

Libby nodded and stood. Her time was up and she needed to get to work. Her appointments were always at eight and she had requested thirty minute sessions so she could arrive at work on time. The last thing she wanted was to tell Lightman, though it seemed inevitable now.

 

“Come in.” Lightman called from the other side of his closed door when she knocked.

“Cal, do you have a minute?”

“Hours for you, love.” Lightman smiled.

Libby sat in a chair across from his desk, hesitating on how to bring up what she needed to.

“What is it?” He coaxed, he could see something was bothering her. Hell, he knew something had been bothering her for a while now... everyone did.

Libby closed her eyes and exhaled. “I need to limit the cases I work to governmental appointees and cheating spouses... nothing relating to death, kidnapping, or torture.”

“Why?” Lightman inquired.

“I’ve been having nightmares... about Turner.”

“For how long?”

“Since Martin Walker.” She sighed.

“That’s coming up on a year now.”

“I’ve been trying other things, but my shrink thinks this could help.”

“You’re seeing a psychiatrist?” Lightman asked, lifting a brow.

“For a few months now.”

“Ok. I’ll put you with Loker today. The pharmaceutical case.” Lightman smiled.

“Thanks.”

 

After work she swung by a store specializing in aromatherapy she had found on the internet. It was a tiny little shop, with small vials of essential oils covering the majority of the shelving. What wasn’t covered in different scents had colorful bags or cards or other random things that seemed more like impulse buys than what someone would actually go there to shop for.

“Can I help you?” A lady who was about her age, but looked like she fell out of the seventies asked as she exited the back room.

“I’m looking for a light scent to help me sleep.” Libby replied.

The lady guided her to the back corner of the store, handing her a mesh bag filled with coffee beans. “These are our lighter scents. A lot of people use Lavender for sleep, but Clary Sage and Roman Chamomile work well too.”

“I may browse a bit and see if something jumps out at me.”

“Ok. We just got a shipment in, so I’m unloading it in the back. Ring the bell on the counter if you have a question or find what you’re looking for.” The lady smiled.

Libby nodded and started reading the names of the different essential oils. Lemongrass was a possibility, she wasn’t exactly sure what it reminded her of, but it was pleasant scent and made her smile. She continued browsing the scents available, picking up a honeysuckle oil. When she smelled it she was instantly taken back to the backyard she had played in when her family lived in Boston. The yellow and white flowers covering the fence at the back of the yard. Sure it was an invasive little weed, overtaking anything growing near it, but the smell would always remind her of her father. Most of her summers were spent playing out there, her father in tow. Tag, house, tea parties... you name it her dad would play along, giggling like a child himself. After he was killed, she spent a lot of time out there reading, his laugh filling her ears when the breeze would blow the sweet scent her direction.

She rang the bell and the lady reappeared. “Interesting choice.” She smiled.

“It should work, right?”

“It’s light, not over powering so it wont keep you awake, it’s just not a typical choice for a sleep aide.” She smiled. “Do you need a diffuser?”

“Yes.” Libby said. “What do you recommend?”

The lady placed a reasonably priced one on the counter and Libby not knowing much about them, took her suggestion.

 

“Why does it smell like honeysuckle in here?” Reid asked, wrapping his arms around her as they entered her bedroom.

“Dr. Nelson suggested finding a scent that I associate with a happy memory to ward of my nightmares. This reminds me of my dad.” She shrugged.

“What other suggestions has she made?”

“Limit caffeine, stay positive before bed, shake off the nightmare in the morning, exercise, and she wants me to restrict the cases I work.”

“She thinks your job could be a stressor?” He questioned.

“It is what started them back up again.” Libby replied dismissively.

“What about my job?”

“What about your job?” Her voice was more clipped than she intended, but she didn’t want to discuss his job being an issue.

“It could be contributing...”

“Let me try the aromatherapy.” Libby smiled, running her hand along his cheek, hoping to end the conversation.

“Is it working?”

“What?”

“The honeysuckle.”

“It’s only been a week.”

“In other words, you’re still having nightmares.” Reid stated.

“Spence...”

“Are they worse when I’m gone?”

Libby didn’t respond. This was not a conversation she wanted to have.

“Libby...” Reid sighed.

“Please don’t... I’ll figure out how to stop them.” She wrapped her arms tighter around him.

Spencer closed his eyes, watching her slowly deteriorate physically over the last six months in his mind. The dark circles, the weight loss... her talking in her sleep and waking up in a cold sweat. “I can’t...” He whispered.

“You can’t what?” Libby breathed, her chest tightening.

“I can’t be the cause of this.” Reid sighed.

“You’re not, he is.”

“I can’t quit the BAU and...”

“No!” She interrupted.

“Libby...”

“No.” Libby could feel the tears forming in the corners of her eyes as she tried desperately to control her breathing.

“You need to be able to sleep without the constant reminder. Maybe some distance would help.”

“I don’t want distance. I love you...” Her voice almost pleading.

“I love you too. I always will,” Libby closed her eyes letting the tears fall at the last three words, “but you need deal with this... without me.”

Spencer held her as she pressed her face into his chest, running his fingers through her hair as she steadied herself. Libby managed to level her breathing and wiped the tears from her cheeks. Slowly she lifted her head to look at him, expecting to see sadness or anguish... something resembling how she felt. Instead she saw relief and her eyes instantly stung with tears again, causing her to rapidly blink to stop them from falling. She hadn’t thought about how trying her nightmares had been on him.

“Ok...” She whispered, barely able to speak the word.

“Maybe we can revisit us when you’ve sorted everything out.” Reid suggested.

Libby nodded, fighting the tears as she looked down again, not wanting to see how unaffected he seemed... no, how relieved he seemed. He had definitely been affected.

“Libby... I do love you.”

“That’s not helping.” She said hoarsely, looking up at him.

Spencer placed his hand in her hair at the nape of her neck and pulled her to his lips, neither of them in any hurry to end the embrace.

“Call me in a few months and we’ll see where things are.” He sighed, pressing his forehead to hers.

“This is not what I want.”

“I know... me either.” Reid sighed, “I’m going to go now, ok?”

Libby walked him to the door, locking it behind him once he left. Not sleeping at all that night, but that had more to do with crying than her nightmares. You have to actually fall asleep to have nightmares...


	16. November 21st, 2013

November 21, 2013 (plus the weekend)

New York City

 

“How did you sleep?” Reid asked as the group sat around the conference table.

Libby glanced around the room, all eyes on her, including Rafael’s who she had sent to his own home the night before. She had been concerned she might have a nightmare and wasn’t sure she was ready to lose another boyfriend over them.

“Fine.”

“No nightmares?” He added as though she didn’t know what he was referring to.

“I slept fine Spence.” Libby clipped and he seemed to get the point, moving his attention to the file he was holding.

Hotchner glanced between the two. “I’m heading to Virginia to talk with Turner and go through his visitor logs and any correspondence he’s sent or received. Reid will be joining me.”

“I wouldn’t take Spencer.” Libby interjected.

“Why?” Reid asked.

“Turner like to make me talk. The more I talked the more distracted he would become. The pain he inflicted wouldn’t be as hard to take. I spoke a mixture of truth and lies, anything to keep him distracted, but he knows enough to know how I felt. He’ll use that if you take Spence.” Libby stated.

“How would he react to a female?” Hotchner asked.

“He’d be thrown and agitated.” Libby replied.

“I’ll take Blake with me then.” Hotchner said, gathering his things.

Blake joined him and they started to leave, Hotchner pausing to address Reid. “I’m having the prison send over any communication Turner’s had with the outside.”

Reid nodded.

 

They had spent the majority of the day going in circles and were no closer to finding who their copycat was, much less where he might be keeping the girl.

“I’ve got an appointment.” Libby stated rather abruptly when she glanced at her watch. “Call me if you get any leads.”

“Do you want one of us to take you?” Nick offered.

“I’m only vulnerable when I sleep,” Libby smiled and grabbed her bag, “besides he wont be taking a new victim until the first, so I’m safe until then.”

The precinct was actually not too far from her gym, the appointment she had being with her personal trainer, so she decided to walk. Tim could handle her classes for a week, though if this case lasted to much longer than that she’d have to consult between classes. Her training she wouldn’t miss. It gave her a bit of control, something she desperately needed.

She changed into her gym clothes, threw her hair in a pony tail and stuffed her bag in her locker, neatly laying her work clothes on top. Quickly, she made her way to the mats to warm up.

“Your form looks good.” Cameron said as he approached her.

“I could careless about form today. Can we focus on counterattacks?”

“You want to spar with Jeff? He’s here training for an upcoming competition, it’ll be good to work with someone less predictable than me.”

Libby nodded, Cameron and her both knew she could counter anything he offered. Jeff was about twice her size and one of the best fighters at the gym.

“Do not let her size fool you,” Cameron chuckled as he and Jeff joined her on the mat.

Libby fought Jeff for close to forty five minutes. He was stronger, faster, and better trained than she was, but she managed to get a few good takedowns in. It had been a perfect change to her workout. Sure she had taken a few hits and would definitely have a few bruises, but was still standing at the end, had even been victorious at times.

“You compete?” Jeff panted, as Cameron called time, his hands on his knees as he leaned forward catching his breath.

“No.” Libby smiled, her breathing barely heavy.

“How are you not out of breath?” Jeff asked, still working on leveling his own.

“You’re stronger, faster, and pretty much always a step ahead... I can endure.” Libby replied. It had been something she worked on continually... always focused on her breathing during her morning jog, any work out really. What good would it be to be able to defend yourself if you were worn out before you got a chance to fight back. There had been many opportunities to gain control with Turner, but she had been to weak to do anything. Instead she lied crumpled on the ground not bound in anyway, waiting for the next round of pain he’d inflict.

“Are you around next week?” Jeff asked.

“Same time?” Libby smiled.

Jeff nodded, leaving them as Cameron started going over ways to improve for next time.

 

“Where did you go?” Rafael asked when she took the chair next to him, rejoining them at the precinct. Her hair was still in the ponytail and damp at the roots and a little on the ends as though she had sweated or taken a shower recently, both of which were true.

“The gym, I have a standing weekly training session that, given what’s happening, I’m not about to miss.” Libby replied.

“Garcia, any luck on the list of girls who moved from Arizona to New York?” Morgan asked, putting his phone on speaker.

“It’s a long list. Phoenix has a thriving theater community, lots of which have made the move to New York, not to mention countless others who have moved for other reasons. I need more to go on.” Garcia replied.

“I think I’ve got something.” Rollins said. She had been searching through video of different street camera’s around place the latest victim frequented.

“On the girl?” Garcia asked.

“No. There’s a car that I’ve seen around both women’s apartment and work multiple times a day it seems. I’ve got a plate.” Rollins replied, rattling the plate number off to her.

“The plate is stolen, but I’ll see what I can find on the car. Send me the video.” Garcia said, ending the call.

“Has Hotch had any luck?” Libby asked.

“Turner’s enjoying the attention.” Rossi huffed.

Libby rolled her eyes and returned her attention to the file in front of her.

 

“Dinner?” Rafael asked as they gathered their things to leave for the day, seemingly nowhere closer to finding this guy than yesterday.

Libby smiled and nodded, taking his hand as they left.

“Do you mind if we get something to go and take it to my place?” Libby asked.

“Are you going to kick me out because you’re afraid you’ll have a nightmare afterward?” He questioned.

Libby exhaled and looked at him, pausing in the middle of the sidewalk. “You don’t know how bad they can get.”

“Did you have one last night?”

“No.”

“I’ll take my chances.” He smirked, dragging her towards his car, while simultaneously pulling his phone out to place a to go order at one of his favorite restaurants.

 

_“Wakey wakey...” Turner’s voice was soft and coaxing. Libby stirred, her eyes adjusting to the dark. She definitely wasn’t in her hotel room anymore, but she knew she had fallen asleep there. “Wake up!” He snapped, kicking her in the side so hard the breath was knocked out of her._

Libby jerked awake, taking a sharp intake of air as she did, as though she were still trying get her breath back. She closed her eyes and took control of her breaths, opening them to find Rafael staring back at her.

“Nightmare?”

“I can’t do this again...” She sighed as he pulled her against him.

They laid like that for a while, Libby staring blankly at the wall.

“You have to sleep.” Rafael said, noticing she wasn’t even trying to close her eyes.

“I’m afraid to.”

“The less sleep you get the more likely you’ll have them. The more worried you are, the more likely you’ll have them.”

“What’s your suggestion?” Libby grumbled.

“Close your eyes and think of me.” He smirked.

“You’re confident all of a sudden.” She chuckled.

“I’m always confident.” Rafael smiled.

“Full of yourself maybe.” Libby grinned.

“That too.”

Libby shook her head and kissed him. Resting her head back on his chest she closed her eyes and remembered how frustrated he had seemed with that file the night they met at the bar, how his eyes had lit up when she drew his attention to her and they started talking... Soon she drifted back to sleep.

 

“Do you want breakfast?” Libby grinned, when she went back to her bedroom to wake Rafael up.

“Does breakfast include coffee?” He grumbled, sitting up.

“It does.”

“How’d you sleep?”

“Better the second round.” She smiled.

“You didn’t have another nightmare?”

“Nope. Now go shower and I’ll start on the bacon and eggs.”

“How long have you been up?” Rafael yawned.

“Since six.” It was seven thirty and Libby had already showered and done her hair and makeup, though she was still in her pjs.

“What got you up at six?”

“My morning jog.” She smiled. She normally snuck out of the apartment to take it before he woke, always leaving a note just in case. So far he had never read it.

“Since when do you do that?”

“I run most mornings, you just sleep through it. If you ever read my note I’d change it up, but since you don’t I just leave this every time.” She handed him a slightly crumpled piece of paper that read: I went for a jog, be back by 6:45. “It got caught in the drawer one morning.” She smiled when he flipped it over a few times.

“Make toast too.” Rafael said, kissing the top of her head on his way to the shower.

 

Friday and most of the weekend proved to be as fruitless as the last two days. Hotchner and Blake had returned, Turner giving them nothing to work with.

“The car is Turner’s.” Garcia blurted when Morgan answered his phone, not even giving him time to address her.

“Well there goes any chance this isn’t a copycat.” Rossi grumbled.

“Cross reference anyone living in New York or the surrounding area with people from Turners past. Look at white men in their thirties, possibly early forties.” Hotchner said.

“On it.” Garcia replied.

“How’s the list of women coming?” Libby asked. It was already the twenty forth and as much as she’d like to find their current victim before time ran out, she’d also like to prevent another from being taken.

“It’s still thirty possibles.” Garcia sighed.

“Send me their pictures, I’ve got an idea.” Libby smiled, though she wasn’t sure why. The idea she had made every hair on her body stand on end.

“Will do sweetness.” Garcia said, ending the call.

“What’s your idea?” Hotchner asked.

“Can you get Turner taken to The Lightman Group?” Libby asked.

“You want me to get the man who tried to kill you a day pass from maximum security prison?” Hotchner asked, lifting a brow.

“I want to read him... on my turf.” Libby huffed.

“You do?” Both Rafael and Reid said at the same time.

“I do.” Libby replied, resolve setting in.

 


	17. September 2nd, 2011

September 2, 2011 (Basically the month of September)

Washington D.C.

 

For three months Libby had been in a shitty mood. Everyone knew about the breakup and seemed to be walking on eggshells around her. She had lost a few more pounds and the nightmares, that at work only Lightman knew about, where as bad as ever. Part of her was happy that Spencer didn’t have to deal with them anymore, but mostly she felt the breakup had been a mistake seeing as it hadn’t helped the nightmares at all.

“You seem agitated.” Dr. Nelson noted as Libby sat down for her session.

“I am agitated. If I had known that everything would be worse I would have fought him harder on the breakup.” Libby huffed.

Dr. Nelson tapped her pen on her notepad. “Why didn’t you?”

“What?” Libby snapped.

“I’m simply curious as to why you didn’t fight him harder.”

“He has his own things he needs to work through.”

Dr. Nelson lifted her brow.

“Fine. He was relieved to have an out, and I can’t blame him. I feel like a train wreck right now... I’m not good for anyone.” Libby sighed.

“Why do you think he ended things?” Dr. Nelson asked. They had talked about the breakup, but she had never asked what Libby thought Spencer’s reasoning was.

“He couldn’t watch me suffer anymore... mostly though, I think he felt like he was somehow making the nightmares worse.”

“Have you excepted that the relationship is over?”

Libby stared at her not knowing how to answer... this was temporary. The relationship wasn’t over. They’d pick up where they left off when she was better. But that’s when it hit her. She wasn’t any better... she wasn’t going to get any better, not if she kept living in this limbo state. “No.”

“You’re never going to move forward if you don’t.”

 

Libby entered her apartment after work, locking the door behind her and setting an empty copy paper box and her bag down on her couch. She pulled the picture of her and Spencer from her desk out of her bag and ran her thumb over his face, letting the tears freely fall as she placed it in the box. Making her way around her apartment, she placed everything that reminded her of Spencer in the box, then placed the box in the top of her closet and shut the door. Hoping to start moving things forward. Hoping that letting this go would help her regain some sense of control.

 

For the next couple weeks she got up early every morning and went for a run to clear her head. It seemed to be helping her concentrate better at work and her appetite was slowly coming back, but the nightmares were persistent and continued to wake her multiple times a night. She always set an alarm for six but hadn’t needed it in months as she was typically jerked awake by her own subconscious between four thirty and five am. It’s why she had decided to start running in the morning... she wasn’t sleeping anyway, so she may as well be productive.

 

“What are you doing tonight?” Loker asked as they wrapped up work for the day.

“Watching a movie, maybe.” Libby shrugged.

Loker shook his head. “That’s lame. Do you want to grab a drink with me first?”

Initially, Libby was going to beg off. She wasn’t much company and wasn’t in the mood, but going home to sit alone for another night probably wasn’t healthy either. “Why not.” She shrugged.

“Could you sound less excited.” Loker teased.

Libby smiled and rolled her eyes, leaving for her office to grab her bag.

“I’ll grab drinks, what do you want?” Loker asked as they found a booth at the back of the bar.

“Dirty vodka martini... Tito’s if they have it.”

Libby hung her coat on the hook at the end of the booth and sat her bag next her once she took her seat, adjusting herself and taking a deep breath. She could do this. She could hangout with a friend like a normal person. “Just fake it...” She muttered to herself when she saw Loker heading back from the bar.

 

Four drinks in and they were both laughing as they talked about an old case where Lightman had managed to piss off the head of homeland security.

“I seriously thought she was going to have him arrested at one point.” Loker chuckled.

“It’s amazing how many friends he has in high places considering how many people he’s alienated.” Libby grinned, genuinely grinned... for the first time in months.

Loker stared at her, but didn’t say anything.

“What?” She smirked.

“It’s just nice to hear you laugh.” He smiled.

“It’s good to laugh.”

“What was it like having Cal around growing up?”

“Honestly, not much different than having him around now. He’s always treated me like a daughter, more so after my dad died... There was a time period, in my teens, when I thought I hated him.” Libby chuckled.

“Really?” Loker’s brows lifted.

“Yes. I’d want to go out and do something with my friends that I knew my mom would say no to, so like all teenagers I’d lie and say I was going somewhere else. Cal would always call me on it. It would make me so mad. Of course now I understand how risky and stupid the things I wanted to do were.”

“What could you have wanted to do that was so risky? You don’t exactly strike me as the precarious type.” Loker smiled.

“My school had cliques, mostly to do with who your family knew and how much money they had, or what your GPA was... sometimes both. I was a scholarship kid. My mom was a teacher and though she had received life insurance money when my father died, it wasn’t enough to pay the forty thousand dollar yearly tuition. For a while I wanted to fit in, feel like I belonged. I’d go to parties, drink a little. I wasn’t stupid about it, I’d nurse a drink all night, pretending it wasn’t my first. It wasn’t exactly the scene I was interested in, but I didn’t want to be picked on like the other scholarship kids. Knowing what I know now... the parties at houses of out of town parents... the cars I got into not even thinking about how much the person driving had had to drink... that was stupid. Thankfully, nothing ever happened.” Libby sighed.

“I can’t picture you like that, trying to fit in.”

“Good don’t. High school was a means to an end. I found my people in college.” Libby smirked.

“You want another round?” Loker asked, noticing their almost empty drinks.

Libby chewed on her lip as she tried to decide, already feeling more buzzed than she’d like, but also not wanting to go home to her empty apartment yet.

“It’s a simple question.” Loker teased.

“I never drink this much, I’m thinking about the getting home aspect of having another drink.” She smiled.

“We could grab some beer and watch whatever movie you were thinking about watching earlier.” Loker suggested.

“And how will you get home?” She chuckled.

“There’s this service, with little yellow cars. You call and they’ll pick you up and drop you off, wherever you want, in exchange for currency.” Loker quipped.

“Jackass.” Libby chuckled following him to the bar to pay her tab.

 

“Here.” Loker said, handing her another beer, her third.

“You’re nots paying attenchtion.” Libby slurred, while scolding Loker for looking at his phone.

“You’re drunk.” He chuckled.

“Am nots”

“Oh, ok.” Loker smiled, turning his attention back to the film.

“Maybe a little drunks.” Libby pouted. She couldn’t remember the last time she drank this much.

“You’re a cute drunk.”

“How are yous nots more drunks?” She asked, furrowing her brow at her own sentence.

“I didn’t drink liquor, only beer.” Loker smiled, shifting to face her.

“So you’re not ineeb... innnneeb...” Libby huffed slightly, annoyed she couldn’t get the word she wanted out, “inebrated at all?” Close enough.

Loker bit back a chuckle and smiled. “Oh, I’m inebriated. If I wasn’t there’s no way I do this.”

“Do wha...” Her question was interrupted by his lips pressing against hers.

Libby returned the kiss, her hands reaching into his hair as he pushed her to lay back on the couch. She closed her eyes and suddenly it was Spencer making out with her on the couch, not Loker. Her hand cupped his cheek and a soft moan escaped her when his tongue slipped between her lips. Libby opened her eyes when Loker’s kisses moved to her neck, his dark, almost black hair intertwined between her fingers, jerking her back to reality.

“Loker...” She panted, but he merely hummed his response against her neck continuing his kisses lower.

“Eli, wait.” Libby breathed.

Loker stopped and looked up at her. “You never call me Eli...”

“I... I can’t...” She stammered, looking directly at him.

Loker licked his lower lip as he bit it, slowly dragging it into his mouth, looking up at her from where he laid atop her, his eyes soft and dilated.

“I still love Spencer.”

“I know.” He shrugged.

“Eli...”

“I’m fine with that.” Loker replied, pulling himself higher so he was level with her eyes, his lips inches from hers.

“No you’re not.” Libby stated, continuing eye contact as she shook her head.

“You’re not the only one who can read people,” Loker smirked, “I know you don’t feel the same way about me. I’m ok with that.”

“I’m not.” Libby said, pursing her lips apologetically.

Loker closed his eyes and gave her a kiss on the forehead, dragging himself to sit next to her on the couch.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered. The whole make out session having been slightly sobering.

“Don’t apologize. It’s fine.” Loker smiled, but his eyes didn’t crinkle.

“Do you want to finish the movie?”

“I think I’m going to go.” He replied, gently squeezing her hand. “I’ll see you Monday.”

 

Libby sat on the couch, after locking the door, trying to figure out how the night had gone so horribly wrong. It was the first time in a long time she had just relaxed and had fun with someone. She and Loker got along great, he was a good friend, but that was all she felt. Her still inebriated brain convinced her, at least momentarily, that she should have just slept with him. “Yes, because that would make things less complicated...” she muttered to herself. Slowly she got up and checked the doors and windows on her way to change for bed. Laying while staring at the ceiling until the alcohol lulled her into a fitful sleep. It wasn’t dreams of Turner this time, instead she tossed and turned, waking with the sickening feeling that she had cheated on Spencer, despite the fact that she hadn’t spoken to him in close to four months... that they weren’t together anymore... that she hadn’t done anything.

 

At work Loker was the same Loker he always was, and they both seemed to be content pretending nothing had happened. Even Lightman didn’t suspect anything. At home Libby felt more and more trapped in a city she’d lost all connection to. Everywhere she went reminded her of Spencer or work... or working with the BAU.

She was siting at home contemplating calling Spencer, he had mentioned the arbitrary four month mark, but what would she say. Nothing had really changed. As luck would have it, Dr. Phillips, one of her old professors who had taken a Dean position at Columbia a few years back, called. Half way through the call he chided her, as usual, for not taking him up on the professorship he had offered her.

“How serious is that offer?” Libby asked.

“I can make room for you the Spring semester.” He replied.

Libby was quiet for a moment. Perhaps a change of scenery would do her good... It would be an adjustment to get used to a new apartment, but only a month or two.

“When would I need to be on campus?”

“I’d need you there by January ninth and your syllabus emailed to me by the end of October so we can get the class listed for the registration window.” Dr. Phillips stated.

“I’ll start working on them tomorrow.” Libby smiled.

“Them?”

“I was thinking a profiling class in addition to the behavior analysis one you always mention.” Libby said, feeling excited about something for the first time in a long time.

 

When she got off the phone with Dr. Phillips she called Spencer. She wasn’t sure where they stood and wanted to make sure he wasn’t waiting on her... afraid she’d never get to where she needed to be.

“Libby? Hi.” It was good to hear his voice.

“Hey Spence.”

“How are you?”

“Honestly, about the same. That’s why I called, I’m taking a job at Columbia University, a teaching job. I think I need to do this.” Libby said, getting it all out at once.

“A change could be beneficial.” Spencer replied.

“That’s what I’m hoping.”

“You know I only want what’s best for you. To be able to sleep again.”

“I know.” Libby smiled.

“Libby... I...” He hesitated, not sure if he should say it, even though he still felt it.

“I love you too... Promise me you’ll call.”

“I promise. Anytime I need to talk. You’ll call too.” She could tell he had smiled.

“I will. If six months goes by and we haven’t heard from the other we are obligated to call, even if we have nothing important to say.” Libby giggled.

“Six months seems entirely too long, but I’ll put it in my calendar.” He chuckled.

“That’s just a limit. Call anytime in between.” Libby smiled.

That evening she outlined her plan for both classes, researched a few possible textbook options, and started on the syllabi, hoping to have them emailed to Dr. Phillips by the end of the week. She’d tell Lightman once it was received, not wanting to quit her job before Dr. Phillips looked at it... just in case.


	18. November 26th, 2013

November 26, 2013

New York City

 

_“What day is it?” Her throat was dry and the voice that came out hardly sounded like her anymore. Libby laid crumpled on the concrete floor, blood dried and caked to her skin, her hair matted to the side of her face from more blood, possibly sweat, or maybe it was still wet from Turner’s earlier form of entertainment... She didn’t really know how long ago that had been now. “Not the day you want?” He replied, amusement clearly etched in his voice. “Can you at least tell me how many days I have left?” Libby asked. She hadn’t bothered to lift her head, her whole body ached too much. “No.” He huffed, flipping on the light, temporarily blinding her. Libby blinked until her eyes adjusted. The room was solid concrete, the only door in or out looked to be steal... her hair was still wet, she could see it spread out across the floor, though she wasn’t sure if this was a comfort or not. “Stand up.” Turner snapped. Libby didn’t move. “Stand up!” He yelled again. This time when Libby ignored him he kicked her in her ribs right where he had cracked them with a baseball bat on a previous day. Libby gasped for air as her eyes shot open._

 

“Another nightmare?” Rafael asked when she sat up in bed. She had been having them most every night, but they had been short, manageable, and she’d wake without startling, turn to face Rafael and fall back asleep forcing happier thoughts into her head.

Libby glanced at the clock, five. “I’m going for a run.” She said, climbing out of bed.

“You should sleep, it’s still dark out.” Rafael coaxed, urging her back to his arms.

“I can’t, I’m up now. I wont be long, thirty minutes, maybe less.”

“It’s still dark.”

“I’ll be fine.” Libby said as she slipped into underwear and a sports bra and pulled workout clothes from a drawer.

Rafael continued to watch her as she fasten a wide black belt around her waist before she finished dressing. At first he thought it was a brace of some kind, but then she pressed her thumb to a notch in her nightstand and reached underneath, pulling out a small gun. “You carry a gun when you run?” He asked as she slid it in place in the holster along her back.

“I have my carry permit.” She smirked, pulling a sweatshirt on, covering any visual of the gun.

“I’m pretty sure you can’t carry in a state park even with a permit.” Rafael chided.

“So, have me arrested.” Libby smiled, leaning across the bed to give him a quick kiss.

“Libby...”

Libby grabbed socks and her running shoes, turning back to him when she got to her bedroom door. “Don’t you feel better that I have it?”

“That’s not the point.” He smirked.

“I’m former FBI, aced the gun portion of my qualifications, and I promise no one will find out it’s on me unless it’s needed, in which case I’ll happily deal with the consequences.” Libby smiled.

“Can’t you just cuddle here in bed with me instead?”

“I need to clear my head.” She sighed, turning to leave.

 

“Are you two ready?” Hotchner asked, glancing at Rafael and Libby.

“As ready as I’m going to be.” Libby smiled.

She had gone back and forth on whether to ask Rafael to join them to D.C. or not. Initially she thought she’d just stay at Lightman’s and avoid the whole hotel issue all together if they had to stay the night, but she didn’t know how much of Cal she wanted to tolerate. He could be pushy when she wasn’t forthcoming with information. A hotel would offer her a place in the evening away from Lightman. Then on the other hand, she had only been dating Rafael for two months, maybe she shouldn’t be putting that much on him. Technically, he was involved in the case whether they were dating or not... still that didn’t include dealing with her waking abruptly in the middle of the night. And who knew how actually being face to face with Turner would effect her sleep. Ultimately, she decided to talk to him and ask what he would prefer.

Libby gathered her bag and followed Hotchner and Rossi to the black suburban parked out front, Rafael not far behind her. They both climbed in the back as Hotchner drove to the airport.

“Is this how you always get around?” Rafael mused as the group entered the aircraft.

“We are in a different city almost weekly and in most cases need to be there immediately. A designated plane is a necessity.” Hotchner stated.

“You ok?” Rossi asked, noticing Libby leg continuously fidgeting.

“I’ll be better when this is over.” Libby grumbled.

“This was your idea.” Hotchner stated, the corners of his mouth tugging at a smile.

“Don’t remind me.” She smirked, hoping they could get this done and head back to New York before the end of the day.

 

At The Lightman Group, Libby lead them to the lab knowing that’s where everyone was busy getting set up.

“Libby, love, good to have you back.” Lightman said as they entered.

“Cal.” She smiled, giving him a hug.

“Alright, introductions then. This is Agents Hotchner and Rossi and Libby’s boyfriend Rafael Barba,” Lightman stated gesturing to the people entering the room, “and here we have Dr. Jillian Foster, Ria Torres, and Eli Loker.”

“Boyfriend?” Loker asked, lifting a brow and glancing at Rafael.

“Manhattan’s DA office has him working the case to keep ahead of the press.” Libby stated.

“He doesn’t exactly seem like he’d work in public relations.” Loker stated.

“Assistant District Attorney.” Libby smirked.

“That makes more sense.” Loker smiled.

“So, where are we?” Libby asked turning her attention to the box in the middle of the lab that they used to conducted controlled interviews. Once inside the room would appear to have white walls, but from where they stood the walls were clear, the table and chairs visible.

“Everything is set up, we’re just waiting on the inmate.” Torres replied.

“When should Turner arrive?” Libby asked, her voice betraying her emotions to more than those trained to read them.

“I can question him?” Lightman offered.

“I’m good.” Libby said, regaining the resolve she felt when she originally suggested this.

“At ten.” Hotchner stated, answering her question about Turner’s arrival.

 

Libby watched through the glass as Loker attached the heart and blood pressure monitors to Turner, both Rossi and Hotchner in the room, armed guards just outside. He was cuffed to the table and his ankles where cuffed, a chain connecting them preventing him from moving to freely. He looked different than she remembered, smaller maybe... she couldn’t place it.

“You’re up.” Hotchner said, breaking her train of thought and causing her to jump slightly.

Libby realized Turner was alone in the room, just sitting there waiting for her... though he had no idea she’d be the next person to walk in the room. “Yeah.” She nodded.

“Do you want me to go in with you?” Hotchner offered.

“I’ll get more from him by myself.” Libby replied, clutching the file Garcia had put together for her closer to her and made her way to the room.

“Libby. This is a pleasant surprise.” Turner smirked when she walked in.

“Is it? You don’t seem pleased.” Libby said calmly sitting across from him.

“You should be dead,” He snapped, “I should have done it that morning, but I always had to stretch out the final day. It’s the worst you know... of course you know.” Turner chuckled, his dark, almost black, eyes boring into hers. “Tell me...” He leaned forward slightly and Libby involuntarily inched her chair backwards causing him to smile. “Do they know how many times you begged?”

“They who?” She questioned, her voice stronger than she expected it to be, buying her a little time to compose herself. Sitting face to face with him, hearing his voice again... was more than she had anticipated.

“Whoever is watching you interview me?”

“If they did, they wouldn’t have let me in this room with you.” Libby replied, her eyes locking with his.

“For my safety or yours?” He asked quirking an eyebrow.

“You actually think anyone cares about your safety?”

He smirked and leaned back in his chair. “They do until you catch my friend.”

Libby laid the file on the table and pulled out a stack of pictures.

“Oh please tell me I get to see my girls.” Turner said leaning forward again, his eye dilating.

“Not quite.” Libby clipped, holding up a picture of the first girl.

She only held it up for a moment but his reaction wasn’t what she was looking for so she moved to the next. Garcia had sent them photos of each girl with dark brown, anything close to auburn, hair that had moved from Phoenix to New York in the last five years. One by one she showed them to Turner, her eyes never leaving his.

“I don’t get it.” Torres said furrowing her brow as she watched Turner through the glass. “He’s portrayed disgust at each picture she’s showed him. How are we going to know which one if he hates them all?”

Cal however wasn’t watching Turner, he was intently watching Libby. “She’s looking something specific, something she’s seen before.”

Libby continued through the stack and was more than midway into it when she saw it. The look he’d have when he was getting ready to torment her flashed across his face for a millisecond. It had been so dark in the concrete room that she only saw it when he was right in her face and those last few days when he had flipped the light on, but it would be forever ingrained into her memory. Sometimes she startle awake having just seen that face for a moment in her dreams. She had been keeping count as she flipped through the photos, noting the number twenty two as she continued to show him pictures. Once completed, she straightened the stack and placed them back in the folder.

“Did you find what you were looking for?” Turner asked a smile tugging briefly at his lips, indicating he thought he had gotten away with something.

“Should I have?” Libby replied emotionlessly.

“It’s a shame none of those women have any connection to me, you only have four days until he takes his next victim... of course that could be you.”

“We both know I’m last.” Libby stated.

“It’s painstakingly obvious isn’t it? But who can resist a five year anniversary.” Turner smiled.

Libby exhaled and stood, turning to leave without speaking. She knew he had more he wanted to say and that if he thought he was losing his opportunity he might give away more than he intended.

“You’ve met him.” Turner called as she reached the door.

Libby turned to face him but didn’t speak.

“Talked to him, even touched him...”

“Touched him?” Libby questioned, lifting her brow.

“Maybe that prosecutor you’ve recently started dating.” Turner smirked.

“I doubt that.”

“No it couldn’t be him, you two have been together twenty four seven it seems. He’d have no time to torture our missing girl now would he?”

“Just a brush up against him or a touch I’d know happened?” Libby asked.

The corners of Turners mouth pulled up as he pushed his bottom lip up and shrugged.

Libby stared at him for a moment and opened the door.

“It’ll be different this time, you wont see it coming.” Turner called after her as she exited the box.

 

“Pull up Turner as I show him number twenty two.” Libby said once the door shut and she knew Turner could no longer hear her.

Loker cued up the video of both cameras, one focused on Turner the other on her and the picture she was holding, to the point she mentioned.

“He looked the same with every girl, why that one?” Torres asked.

“It was brief, but it was there...” Libby exhaled, watching the screen with Turner on it. When it reached the point she wanted, Libby leaned passed Loker and paused the footage.

“He looks pleased almost happy.” Torres stated, furrowing her brow.

“He’s excited... about what is going to happen to her,” Libby cringed, “we can head back to New York now.”

“That’s it?” Loker questioned, slightly surprised they would be leaving so soon.

“He’s not going to give me anything more. The fact that I’ve had physical contact with our unsub was more than he intended.” Libby replied.

“He knows details of your life.” Hotchner noted, looking more than concerned.

Libby’s eyes connected with his. “So find out how he’s communicating with our unsub.” She was no longer concerned with Turner, what he knew about her, what he had planned for her. Her only concern now was preventing Turner the satisfaction of getting to the victim he intended to take instead of her. If Libby had anything to say about it Stacy Clements would never know the horrors she had narrowly escaped.

 

“Are you ok?” Rafael asked as they took their seats once again on the plane.

The corners of her mouth twitched up when she nodded. “I’m more than ok.”

Rafael furrowed his brow and tilted his head slightly as his eyes scanned hers.

“He’s not nearly so scary when he’s cuffed to a table... and smaller than I remember...” Her voice that had started somewhat playfully trailed off a bit.

“They always are.” Rossi smiled, patting her shoulder as he passed to take his own seat.

“Hotch, can you let Garcia know I’m getting a list of every man I can think of that I’ve had any contact with since I moved to New York?” Libby asked as she typed a list of names into an email.

Hotchner nodded and made the call.

“You haven’t listed me.” Rafael smirked, looking over her shoulder as she typed.

“Yeah... have I mentioned I’m extremely good at reading people,” Libby chuckled, “besides, Garcia probably knows every job you’ve held, address you’ve lived at, and girl you dated, including any one night stands. If there was cause for concern, she’d have found it by now.”

Rafael rolled his eyes and ran his fingers through her hair as she continued to type. “I’ve never had a one night stand.” He smirked.

“Neither have I.” She smiled up at him and then returned to her list, trying to include anything she thought could be relevant. Her fellow professors, Dean Phillips who had hired her, her TA, her trainer, other people she came in contact with at the gym, and anyone else should could think of. She also included establishments she frequented. The coffee shop, the grocery store, a few restaurants she ate ate regularly. It was possible she didn’t even know she had crossed paths with him.

“That’s quite the list.” Garcia said when she answered the phone.

“I’m just trying to list everything I can think of.” Libby replied, leaning into Rafael’s side.

“It’ll take some time.”

“I sometimes run with a small group at Central Park. It’s not an official group or anything just a few of us noticed each other and decided running in a group would be safer than solo since the sun wasn’t up yet. It’s a small group, three women and two men, I only have first names. Tom, Kyle, Penny, Karen, and Amy. We meet at the West 110th Street Playground at six, I’m not sure if that’s helpful.”

“I’ll see what I can find.” Garcia said, hanging up to start her search.

“I thought you ran alone.” Rafael stated once she was off the phone.

“I do if I go for an earlier run, but most work days six works just fine and I meet up with this group. We barely even talk, just find safety in numbers, I really know nothing about them except none of them have given me reason to feel uncomfortable.” She shrugged.

“You seem calmer than the flight to D.C.” Rafael noted.

“I feel calmer. He thinks he’s toying with me, but I know what’s coming this time and I have no intention of letting it happen again.” Libby smiled.

 


	19. October 24th, 2011

October 24, 2011 (An indiscernible amount of time after)

Washington D.C.

 

“You’re moving?” Loker whispered as Lightman made an announcement listing a few changes that would be happening in the next few weeks.

Libby nodded and gave him a soft smile, returning her attention to Cal.

“Libby... wait.” Loker called after her once the meeting was over. He looked around the hall to see who was around and pulled her into her office, shutting the door behind them. “It’s not because of the other night is it?”

“No Eli,” she smiled, running her thumb across his cheek as she cupped it, “I just need a change of scenery. I new city that doesn’t have so many memories for me.”

“You’re going get bored teaching.” Loker smirked.

“Then Cal will hirer me back.”

“You’re sure it has nothing to do with me kissing you, because I can blame that on the beer.”

“I promise it has nothing to do with the kiss, and we both know I’d know you were lying.” Libby smirked.

Loker sighed, but let it go. Knowing the move had nothing to do with the kiss, but he would have liked a better explanation than just needing a change.

 

Libby spent the next few weeks packing up her apartment after work. She was mostly packed, just her kitchen left. It was the room she had saved for last so she could still cook up until the last minute.

She was wrapping her dishes in tissue paper, hating the feel of newspaper residue, when there was a knock at her door. Smiling, she quickly made her way to the door to let Spencer in.

“You’re really moving.” Reid said when he entered her apartment. Her moving boxes had taken over most of the living room at that point.

“What? Did you think this was just a ruse to get you back over here.” Libby teased.

“You leave tomorrow?”

“Sold my car last week, hired movers to take it to New York, and I pick up keys to my new place tomorrow afternoon. The only thing I have left to pack is what’s left in my kitchen.” She smiled.

“We’re ordering in then?”

“If we want to eat. That or we can go out.”

“I think I’d like to spend your last night in town with just you.” Reid smiled.

 

They had most of her kitchen packed up when the pizza arrived.

“How are you sleeping?” Reid asked as they sat in her living room floor using a packed box as a table.

“Better. I still have nightmares but they’re less frequent now. I think they started to improve when I started running to clear my head after we broke up.”

“You always hated running and said the only reason you suffered through it was so you wouldn’t be winded while chasing an unsub.” He chuckled.

“I’m pretty sure I was trying to torture myself, now it’s almost cathartic.” She smiled.

“You’re going to make a fantastic teacher.”

“You think?” Libby sighed, smiling when he nodded.

“I’m a little worried that the topics I’ve chosen to teach won’t distance me enough from the issues that haunt my dreams but it’s truthfully the only thing I know. I’m not sure I want to focus my career on anything else.” Libby added.

“I don’t think it’ll be that bad. You choose which cases you talk about and how your lecture will be outlined. There can be some sense of control that can help you heal in that alone.” Reid said.

“I hope so.”

“New York isn’t that far, I can come visit sometime.” Reid offered.

“That would be nice, but I want to get my bearings first. You’re one of my favorite people and this, even after, feels natural... but I don’t want to start relying on it. I’m not sure we...” Libby trailed off. They both knew they’d never be together again, but it still wasn’t something she wanted to say out loud.

“Probably not.” Reid said, pushing his bottom lip up slightly.

“We should finish the kitchen. I still have a few things in my room to pack. Tomorrow’s going to be a long day.” Libby sighed.

 

With the kitchen done, Reid followed her to her room to help with what little she had left in there. He had carried a slice of pizza with him and was leaning against a wall eating as he watched her arrange the toiletries she need for the morning next to a ziplock, bagging and placing the rest in a box.

“Your room looks different without anything on the walls.” Reid smiled.

“Shut up and help pack.” Libby smirked. He had always teased her about the fact that a few of her walls looked like a collage, pictures overlapping pictures, all of a variety of things.

“Where do you want me to start?”

“The nightstands.”

Reid put a box together and started emptying the nightstand to the left of her bed, placing it’s contents in the small box. He chuckled when he moved to the other nightstand, pulling out a box of condoms.

“Something you want to tell me?”

Libby turned to see what he was referencing. “Jesus, I’ve had those for years. They probably should be tossed.”

“They’re not expired.” He laughed, tossing them in the box he was packing.

“You think I’m going to need them?” She chuckled.

“Should we have been using them?”

“No.” Reid furrowed his brow so she elaborated. “I’m on birth control and I knew you for years before we slept together.”

“You weren’t my first, you know.”

“I know that.” Libby smirked, moving closer to him after she finished getting things ready to easily pack in the morning.

They were standing close to each other, the urge to touch in some way overpowering both of them. Spencer pulled her against him, into a tight hug, one Libby reciprocated wrapping her arms around his torso. Her cheek was pressed against his chest and his nestled in her hair. Neither of them daring to look at the other, afraid their lips would find one another. This embrace she could handle leaving. Anything more and she’d question every decision she’d made in the last two months. The decisions that had lead to nightmare free nights at least a few times a week. As much as she wanted to kiss him, she couldn’t go backwards... and she definitely go through leaving him again.

 

The next morning Libby woke up alone. She quickly showered, threw her hair up and stripped her bed, tossing it in the last of the unsealed boxes in her room. She placed her toiletries in her suitcase and double check that everything was packed and ready for the movers.

“You’re early.” Libby chuckle, letting Lightman in.

“Thought I’d keep you company as the movers loaded the truck.” He smirked, holding up a bag containing two muffins and a coffee for her.

“Bless you.” She smiled taking the coffee, both of them finding a place to sit and eat the muffins.

“You nervous?”

“Only about settling into my new apartment. It will take some time to get used to it.” She sighed.

“My offer to sleep on the couch still stands.”

“Is it ok if I decide once we get there?”

Lightman nodded.

 

The almost five hour drive had been filled with Cal’s questions about the classes she had planed to teach, reminiscing about her father and their time at Oxford, and him scolding her for not calling her mother enough.

“This your building?” Lightman asked, searching for a place to park.

“It is.” Libby said, taking a deep breath.

He waited patiently as she picked up keys and the doorman guided the movers, who showed up not long after them, to the service elevator.

Libby unlocked her door, propping it open for the movers and showed Cal around.

“You’re not far from campus.” Lightman noted, looking out the window that over looked Morningside Park.

“I can walk to my office. It’s partially why I chose this building.”

 

Cal ended up staying the night, leaving just after breakfast to start his drive back. Libby slowly started unpacking, arraigning her possessions neatly in the new space, making it start to feel like home. That first night she didn’t sleep well, tossing and turning, seeing Turners face in her dreams. The next night was more of the same. As she finished unpacking the boxes and her apartment finally felt like a home, the nightmares lessened. As she started to get a feel for the city she had moved to, the people she would be working with the following semester, her sleep seemed to normalize. She established a new workout routine, running in the morning and scheduled times with a personal trainer. The therapist her former one had recommended had worked out and life started to fall into a comfortable routine, something she wasn’t sure she had ever actually had before.


	20. November 28th, 2013

November 28, 2013

New York City

 

“You seem rested.” Rafael smiled when he joined her in the kitchen after his shower.

Libby smiled and handed him a cup of coffee. “I feel rested. I think I’ve slept better these last two nights than I have in years.”

“Did you run this morning?”

“No. I didn’t set an alarm to get up in time to run, I never do, I’m just usually up. Today I didn’t wake up until my alarm actually went off.” Libby smiled. She couldn’t remember the last time that had happened. She still set the alarm for work just in case, but hadn’t heard it in years.

“You want a ride to work?” Rafael smirked.

“I would.” She grinned, pushing up to kiss him.

 

Libby and Rafael walked into the precinct hand in hand, only separating when they took their seats at the conference table. Most everyone else was already gathered, going over information Garcia had sent over on the list of people Libby had given her. They were grasping at straws to see if any of them had any connection to Stacy Clements, who was intended to be Turners original final victim.

“I’m sorry, but I have ran every connection I can think of, but can’t link any of these men to Stacy or Turner.” Garcia sighed over the phone.

“It couldn’t be that easy, for all we know it’s some guy who works in a coffee shop that I met once.” Libby muttered.

“When do you bring Stacy in so you can protect her?” Rafael asked.

His question was met with silence.

“They wont bring her in,” Libby said softly when no one else spoke, “they want her to continue her routine as normal as possible. If she alters then the unsub will know we know the next target and deviate. They need him to think nothing has changed.”

“But shouldn’t she know?” He questioned.

“The best chance we have of preventing her from becoming the next victim is to keep track of her and let her remain unaware. If everything goes well, she may never have to know what might have happened to her.” Hotchner stated.

“We have agents watching her every move. If he tries to take her we will intercede.” Morgan added.

Rafael nodded, but he and quite frankly the rest of SVU weren’t exactly thrilled about the idea of not warning her. They tended to put the victim’s safety first as opposed to using them as bait, which was how this felt to them.

“They have agents following me too.” Libby said as though that would be reassuring, but it only reminded him that she could be a possible target in the next few days as well.

 

They hadn’t made much progress and were all gathered around the table for lunch, having decided to bring in sandwiches so they could attempt to keep working.

“Who’s the Caprese?” Nick asked as he pulled sandwiches out of the bag.

“Me.” Libby called.

“Turkey with... mustard?” He asked, questioning the scribble written on the wrapper.

“That’s mine.” JJ smiled.

“How’d you two meet?” Rollins asked as Nick continued to pass out the sandwiches.

“In a bar.” Libby chuckled.

“He does spend a lot of time there.” Liv teased, taking two sandwiches from Nick and passing one to Rollins.

“Haven’t you learned anything from the cases we’ve worked? You never pick a guy up at a bar.” Rossi chuckled from across the table.

They all seemed to have their food and no one was quite ready to get back on track, everyone’s mind needing a break.

“Actually, I’ve learned never to stay at roadside motels, to not read personal information out loud in public places, to avoid rest stops... maybe not take a guy I just met at a bar home with me, but I don’t remember anything about giving a guy my number,” Libby smirked, “and you forget how well I read people.”

“Does that make the whole hitting on a guy in a bar thing easier?” Rollins asked.

“Not so much initiating the conversation, but once it’s started I can tell within seconds if someone’s interested.” Libby replied.

“And with Barba?” Rollins grinned, despite Liv’s disapproving look.

Libby smiled and Rafael rolled his eyes. “The moment he looked up from the file he was huffing at.”

“She told me as much within the first ten minutes.” Rafael smirked.

“Only because you questioned my abilities.” Libby chuckled.

“I’m still not sure I believe that that was an escort.”

“Who was an escort?” Liv questioned, giving Rafael a curious look.

“Just woman on a date across the bar from us,” Libby laughed, “and I promise you she was.”

“If you say so.” Rafael smiled.

 

Lunch was winding down and everyone was shifting back to work mode.

“The current victim... she only has a day left?” Rollins asked.

“I’m afraid so.” Libby sighed.

“How often do you get a break in a case letting you save a victim with this little time left?” Fin questioned.

“More often than not, at this point, we gear ourselves up for what we will learn from the body.” Reid stated.

“It’s possible that we’ll get a new lead, but not typical.” JJ added.

“How did you find me?” Libby asked. It was something she hadn’t been around for and had never thought to ask.

“We knew who we were looking for and while Turner paid cash to rent the warehouse, the owner identified him. We had narrowed down our search at that point. This is different.” Hotchner replied.

 

Everyone was looking for any connection they could make between Turner’s victims and the current unsubs victims, the people in Libby’s life and Turner, still not making any headway other than the crime itself and the victimology.

“I have a training session. I’ll keep my phone handy if you find anything.” Libby smiled, grabbing her gym bag.

“You listed your trainer?” Morgan asked.

“Yep, Cameron Paulson.” Libby smiled.

 

Libby was pretty much warmed up when Cameron met up with her. “Hey Libby.”

“Hey.” She greeted, noticing Jeff from last week walking up with him.

“Were you up for sparring with Jeff again?”

“I completely forgot about our rematch.” Libby smiled.

“Really, I’ve been looking forward to it all week.” Jeff said returning her smile.

“Are you warmed up?”

“I am.”

Libby gestured for him to lead the way to the mats, following not far behind. They were fairly focused as they fought, Jeff having the upper hand due to his sheer size and strength as they started. Neither were going all out though. The purpose of this wasn’t to hurt the other, but to learn different techniques people used, to train. Jeff for his upcoming competition and Libby just as general self defense.

“I’ll have to remember that?” Jeff chuckled when Libby took an opening and pinned him to the mat.

“What, to not lose focus?” Libby goaded, allowing him to stand again for another round.

“No. That your capable of that.” He smirked, quickly taking her down again.

Libby surprised him by wiggling out of his hold, but when she couldn’t gain enough ground to pin him again she instead backed up, giving herself a moment to breath.

“He didn’t say you would be so challenging.” Jeff huffed, pinning her to the mat again.

“Who, Cameron? I’m pretty sure he told you not to take my size for granted.” Libby chuckled as he let her up again.

“Yes, I suppose you’re right.” He smiled as they circle again. “You should consider competing.”

“It’s not really an interest.” Libby shrugged.

“Suit yourself.” He said, advancing on her again. Libby attempted to slip passed him but he grabbed her and slung her to the ground more forcefully than she expected as the wind was knocked out of her.

“Shit, I’m sorry.” He apologized, dropping to her side, Cameron joining her on the other. Libby gasped for air until she pulled her knees to her abdomen relaxing the muscles that were spasming, preventing her from pulling in air and forced herself to breath slowly in through her nose and out her mouth until her breathing regulated.

“I’m ok.” She smiled sitting up so she could stand again.

Jeff gave her a curious look, but didn’t say anything.

“My goal is not to overpower, but to outlast...” Libby smiled, “then overpower.”

“I’d love to go all day with you but I’ve got a big day coming up.” Jeff smiled.

“That’s right, the competition’s in two days.”

“Yeah.” Jeff smirked, but there was something off about it.

“One more round?” Libby asked.

“May as well learn as much as I can.”

Libby didn’t hold back this time, needed to know if she could take him down and how he’d react if she did. She hadn’t thought about Jeff when making her list for Garcia and feared she was sparring with their unsub. Though they’d need to investigate to know for sure and she didn’t want to spook him.

“Fuck!” He muttered when she pinned him, “What happened to outlasting?”

“It was the last round. What would I be holding back for now?” Libby smiled.

“Rematch after my competition? I’d like to learn from you.” Jeff asked, his eyes dilating.

“Sure.” She nodded, trying to appear as though ever fiber of her being wasn’t trying to recoil against the idea.

Jeff made is way to the showers, while Libby rejoined Cameron on the mats to finish her training session.

“What’s Jeff’s last name? I may come see his bout on Saturday.” She asked casually as she worked through a set of weights.

“Jeff Alders, he competes at three.” Cameron replied.

“How long has he been coming here? I don’t remember him except for the last couple months.” Libby questioned.

“That seems about right, he just moved here.”

 

Libby didn’t bother with showering or changing. She simply grabbed her jacket, shoved her work clothes in the gym bag, and ran back to the precinct. The outfits she wore to the gym were purposely chosen to cover the larger of her scars, but also allow her to move. This pink top being one of her favorites as it cropped maybe an inch above her grey leggings with capped sleeves and a high neckline. All of her really noticeable scars were covered, only a few small marks on her upper arms and between the defined lines around abdomen were visible through the small gap.

“Jeff Alders” She blurted as she entered the conference room.

“Who’s that.” Hotchner asked, taking in her outfit and assuming she had just ran from the gym.

“The guy I sparred with last Thursday and today. I completely forgot about him when I made my list for Garcia.” Libby muttered.

“You think he’s our guy?” Nick asked.

“Last week, no, he barely spoke. He was much chattier this week. He mentioned having a big day coming up and when I assumed he was referring to his upcoming competition he said yes, but it wasn’t sincere.” Libby said.

“That’s not a lot to go on.” Fin stated.

“Libby reads everyone, sometimes without meaning to. If she thinks she saw something it’s enough to look into.” Reid said.

Morgan nodded and called Garcia..

“You ok?”Rafael asked, leaning forward slightly to look at her.

“He wants to learn from me.” Libby scoffed. “He wants to learn what I’m capably of...”

“He may not be our unsub.” Blake offered.

“Libby doesn’t typically misread people. If she feels he’s worth looking into we look into him.” Hotchner stated.

 

Rollins had Jeff Alders pulled up on her laptop while they waited for Garcia to call back. “Ok, I have an address for him, but it looks like he’s lived here for two years, or at least the apartment has been rented in his name for that long.”

“Does he have a car registered?” Liv asked, hoping they’d get lucky and the car that belonged to Turner that Rollins had seen around both women’s apartment.

“Nothing registered.” Rollins sighed.

“Any other property listed?” JJ asked.

“I’m looking, but nothing that I can find.” Rollins replied.

“Talk to me baby girl.” Morgan said answering his phone and putting it on speaker. Rafael gave Libby a curious look and mouthed the words ‘baby girl’ causing her to chuckle.

“Ok, so this guy is living in New York, I’ve sent you everything I’ve found on him. The apartment was rented two years ago when he moved from Norman.”

“Oklahoma?” Reid interjected.

“The very one and he used to be roommates with Turner after they were both kicked out of OU. Apparently, they had been matched together in the dorms.” Garcia continued.

“If he’s been in New York for two years, how could have raped and killed the other victims?” Nick asked.

“He rented the apartment in New York two years ago and subleased places in Tampa, Denver, and Portland correlating with out timeline.” Garcia answered.

“Have you found anyplace he might be holding our missing woman?” Hotchner asked.

“Not yet, but I’ll keep looking. One more thing though, the reason they were kicked out of school is because they trapped another student in their dorm room and tormented her. Well, I’m assuming they tormented her, she never came forward or pressed charges. She also left school and later committed suicide. The school took disciplinary actions because other students had complained about them experimenting on animals in the dorm and more or less making the other students uncomfortable. There’s more on what they did to the animals, but you can read that yourself.” Garcia said, clearly uncomfortable with the information she had learned.

“We can check out his apartment.” Fin suggested.

“It could give us more information, but I don’t want to let him know we’re on to him until we know where the girl is. He’d rather leave her to die than tell us where she is.” Hotchner said.

“He won’t be at his apartment, he’ll be wherever he’s keeping her.” Libby said.

“Are you sure?” Rossi asked.

“Pretty sure. I’m mean those two weeks were a blur, but it seemed like Turner was always there towards the end.”

“If he’s at his apartment and we bring him in we may not find her alive.” Hotchner added.

“She may not want to live anyway.” Libby muttered causing everyone to stare at her. “Look, she’ll definitely die tomorrow if you do nothing, so you may as well take any leads you can get.” Libby grumbled not exactly wanted to get into how little desire to live she had had left when they found her, but that was mostly because she didn’t think she would survive anyway and wanted the torture to end. The psychological component that went along with being raped as well... she couldn’t even begin to imagine how this victim would feel.

Hotchner nodded turning his attention to the others. “JJ, Rossi, Morgan, go to his apartment. See if anything there will lead us to where he’s keeping her.”

 

It had felt like hours when they finally heard from Rossi, Morgan, and JJ. Morgan had had Garcia patch them all in on the call together so she could help in real time.

“His place is immaculate, nothing is out of place...” Rossi said, “there’s a safe but so far we haven’t been about to get inside.”

“He does have an affinity for yachts and sail boats. From the look of this place it’s possible he can afford one.” Morgan added.

“Oh... His grandparents were loaded.” Garcia interjected. “The money originally passed on to his parents, but they died in a suspicious car crash three weeks shy of Alders’ twenty fifth birthday.”

“So the money became his?” Rollins asked.

“It did, despite the fact that local police never ruled him out as suspect in his parents death... just not enough evidence.” Garcia sighed.

“Does he own a boat?” Hotchner asked.

“Uhm... let me see,” Garcia said, typing frantically, “yes, he docks it in North Cove Marina. I’m sending you the slip number now.”

 

It was frantic for a few moments as Hotchner directed Rossi and the others to meet them at the marina, already on the phone coordinating with the coastguard as everyone left the precinct, leaving just Libby and Rafael.

Rafael watched as Libby paced the conference room, looking slightly out of place in her pink and grey workout outfit.

“Would you rather be with them?” He teased at how anxious she seemed.

“Only because I hate not knowing things. I’m happy with my career choice.” Libby smirked.

“How long does this part typically take?”

“It depends.” She shrugged.

“That’s helpful.” Rafael chuckled, pulling her to sit in the chair next to him again. Her pacing was putting him on edge.

 

It felt like hours had passed when the agents and Nick and Fin escorted Jeff Alders into the precinct. Libby watched as he smiled at her from across the bullpen on his way to holding.

“What gave me away?” He called noticing she was still in her outfit from earlier.

“You’re too eager.” Libby replied flatly.

“How’s the girl?” Rafael asked, turning to Spencer who had just joined them.

“Pretty beat up, but she’ll make it. Benson and Rollins are with her now.” Reid replied.

“Do you want to keep the case?” Rossi asked, turning to Rafael.

“No. I think the federal prosecutor can handle this one.” Rafael replied, taking Libby’s hand in his. “Are you ready?” He asked.

“Yeah, give me a minute to say goodbye.” Libby smiled as he nodded.

She made a quick goodbye with Hotchner and Blake, adding an it was nice to meet youto the latter. Rossi, Morgan, and JJ all required a hug and she asked them all to give Garcia one for her.

“And last we have Spence.” Libby chuckled as she stood in front of him.

“You always make such a big deal out of goodbyes, we’re going to work together again.” Reid smirked.

“Yes, but things happen... I need this.”

“I know.” He said pulling her into a hug. “He’s kind of ornery.” He teased of Rafael before letting her go.

“Not with me.” Libby chuckled.

“You’re happy?”

“I am.”

“He’s ok with our friendship?” Reid questioned.

“He’s going to have to be.” Libby smiled.

Spencer’s eyes seemed softer, less playful suddenly. “What?” She asked furrowing her brow.

“Did this case make things worse of better for you?”

Libby smiled. “Better.”

“Good.” He smiled, giving her one last hug and handing her off to Rafael who had made his way to them, Libby’s bag draped over his shoulder.

 

 


End file.
